The Future of Online Content Moderation…
On this blog I have discussed the three public interest issues central to Kaye (2019), ‘Speech Police: The Global Struggle to Govern the Internet’: hate speech, terrorism, and disinformation. In each post I drew upon Kaye (2019) suggestions, and other significant literature, providing a relevant contemporary case study in order to contextualise the arguments made. Three main conclusions were drawn: platform-owning companies hold too much power over content moderation, government weaknesses contribute to the pressure put on platform-owning companies as well as increasing public distrust, and our ability to access information online can have very real consequences to daily life.
So, what now?
Kaye (2019) raises two main recommendations for the future of content moderation: significant rethinking of content moderation by platform-owning companies, and government regulation to protect free speech and to ensure the upkeep of public confidence.
In my first post I discussed Facebook’s moderation of terrorist content, arguing that mistakes can arise from such homogenous content moderation responsibilities. Furthermore, in my second post I highlighted how Youtube’s algorithms may censor educational material while simultaneously promoting extremist material.
In my second post I discussed the sharing of fake news via WhatsApp during the Covid-19 pandemic, arguing that the app is both difficult to monitor and filter, whilst also being ideal for the rapid sharing of false information. In this case, government failings were found to lead the public to put increasing trust in information found from alternative sources.
These examples indicate an agreement with Kaye (2019) suggestions for the improvement of content moderation online. Moderation is too homogenous — platform-owning companies are in over their heads, and governments are not providing adequate support to neither platform-owning companies, nor the public. Without real change, the future of content moderation poses a real threat to public speech and public safety.
References
Kaye, D. (2019). Speech police: The global struggle to govern The Internet. Columbia Global Reports. Chicago.
