Bait and Switch

 Troll Tactic:  Bait and Switch

In this tactic, Trolls  or troll bots will:

•  Machinegun a popular Hashtag with reliable reposts every minute or 2 from people with real timely information
• This crowds out the real posters so you can't read anyone but the troll
• Vatniks or people really interested in the topic come to trust the the troll as a source.
• A little at at time, they will begin to spin the truth reflecting their client's talking points. (in the case below, the Russian Propaganda Directorate)  
• The troll may linger as a trusted source to real people for months, or for useful idiots, for years.
• It may even change their mind.

Case Study: Bakmut

I was really impressed by the sophistication of this when I was tracking a battle in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I tracked #Bamut, the city where a big campaign happened for a long time, and there were frequent posts to that hashtag with good information. Hundreds per day, and I checked it frequently ( at least daily)

• I began to see the same poster over and over again posting reliable (at first) information 
• I validated it elsewhere, and it was true. They even celebrated Ukraine victories. 
• In the heat of battles, I noticed reposts every 3-5 minutes by the same poster.
• When it began to go bad for the Russians, this poster began to speculate and then site sources  saying that the Ukraine counter offensive had failed - a clear Russian Troll Farm talking point at the time.
• I checked the sources they sited, and they were bots, trolls, or useful idiots who had reposted a bad source. 
• I finally blocked them,  and was able to see real  information back at the hashtag again-but I had initially let my guard down.

Conclusion

Bait and Switch is an effective mi-information tactic that I hear is a direct import the Russians have perfected on their own people over many years.