The Secret Rules of the Internet

The murky history of moderation, and how it’s shaping the future of free speech.

“(…) companies dump child abuse and pornography, crush porn, animal cruelty, acts of terror, and executions — images so extreme those paid to view them won’t even describe them in words to their loved ones — onto people desperate for work. And there they sit in crowded rooms at call centers, or alone, working off-site behind their screens and facing cyber-reality, as it is being created. Meanwhile, each new startup begins the process, essentially, all over again.”

“a secret army of workers employed to soak up the worst of humanity in order to protect the rest of us.”

“Members of the team quickly showed signs of stress — anxiety, drinking, trouble sleeping — and eventually managers brought in a therapist. As moderators described the images they saw each day, the therapist fell silent. The therapist (…) was ‘quite literally scared.’"