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If the details of moderation rules were public, companies would be facing additional labor costs dealing with posters pushing hard on the edges of those rules.
by dmckeon 11y ago
If the details of moderation rules were public,
companies would be facing additional labor costs
dealing with posters pushing hard on the edges of those rules.
At some level, users can choose from a variety of forums
with different moderation methods, or none, and companies can try
to fit their moderation policies and practices to their users' expectations.
All of that develops in a cross between evolution and arms race,
with lots of moving targets - global variation, changing social mores, changing technology, the latest taboos and moral panics.
Exposing the details of how the sausage is made would help
the people who want to put pebbles (or worse) in the sausage
more than it would help the makers or consumers. If one
finds the sausage too bland, there is likely a spicier one
just a few clicks away. Or one could grind one's own sausage
and compete!
- proksoup 11y agoWhat you describe sounds like security by obscurity.
- dmckeon 11y agoPublishing moderation policy details would be like crowd-sourcing cryptography software development - creating a fractally increased attack surface with a less profitable business model. Social media companies operate in a market economy. These are not public utilities or government programs. Feel free to propose a more cost-effective approach.
- dang 11y agoI think the rules are quite different when dealing with human processes rather than algorithmic ones.
- proksoup 11y agoCould you elaborate, the same principle seems to apply to me, the costs of dealing with people attacking the edge strengthens the edge, no?
- ihnorton 11y agoOr plausible deniability.
- parenthephobia 11y agoIf the details of moderation rules were public, companies would be facing additional labor costs dealing with posters pushing hard on the edges of those rules. If the rules have really hard edges. I think that's very unlikely. I think the substantial reason companies won't publish their moderation rules is almost certainly that they don't have much more than a few bullet points - and a page of "things the lawyers have said you mustn't let people say" - and otherwise leave it up to the whim of the moderators. Having said that, it might well be illegal - or in contempt of court - to publish the list of things that are moderated for legal reasons.