6 ms·

Tumblr Suspends Violent Extremism Researcher's Account

31 points by gee_totes 9y ago

imode 9y ago
this brings into discussion what identifying propaganda actually entails when corner cases like this pop up. interesting circumstances. it makes me wonder: if you're actively doing research on these modern day areas of conflict and the culture that's in them, would you rather ask for forgiveness or permission when posting your material to a site that monitors material of that nature? and if it was so easy to gain forgiveness, what would stop people from framing said areas of conflict in different lights under the guise of research?
- ben0x539 9y ago
  I imagine asking a major social media platform for permission is not gonna get anyone anywhere. What should stop people is looking into whether the framing is obviously fake.
- pvg 9y ago
  I can't see how one would ponder either of these things before the much simpler 'is this a good platform on which to distribute my research on a highly sensitive topic' and then somehow arrive at 'yes, yes Tumblr is'.
  - imode 9y ago
    serious question: where would you rather put it? new information develops every day, and I'm not sure where you'd post such information. though I agree, tumblr isn't exactly my first thought. :P
    - pvg 9y ago
      I have no idea, it's just that if this was my job, I'd probably think long and hard about it and likely wouldn't come up with tumblr. This guy seems to be a serious academic: http://www.belfercenter.org/person/christopher-anzalone http://www.belfercenter.org/person/christopher-anzalone Maybe at an academic institution would be best. Tumblr seems like an obviously iffy choice with a high risk of the work being misidentified/misinterpreted and then tossed out.
  - wordupmaking 9y ago
    I can't believe that apparently some people see "Tumblr" but not the "researcher employed by NATO". It's just text and images and video, the "place" where it's at matters only for the people having to pay for pipes, really. Some of the best things in the world get posted in totally random places, it has always been thus.
    - pvg 9y ago
      The 'place' matters an awful lot. For instance, it's perfectly fine to take a poop in your own bathroom. Something being digital doesn't magically free us from context and norms.
k-mcgrady 9y ago
Somebody's account has been suspended. Ok, why? "I assume he has been suspended because Tumblr thinks Chris is spreading jihadi propaganda.". So (unless it wasn't posted for some reason) nothing to back this up at all and we actually don't know why he was suspended.
- jlarocco 9y ago
  What's your point? If Tumblr doesn't want bad publicity over it then they should tell people why their accounts are being closed. They can't be bothered, so it's left to rumor and speculation.
- keyboardhitter 9y ago
  Tumblr has a bad reputation for suspending / terminating blogs with little to no reason. I do wish they were more transparent about their actions.
- ben0x539 9y ago
  So we're not allowed to draw inferences now? It's not like tumblr is gonna issue a press release to spell it out, so waiting for that before talking about the thing seems counterproductive.
  - archgoon 9y ago
    Signal is preferred to noise. If you have actually worked at Tumblr, or another social company that has to deal with blocking accounts, and can provide some analysis of what goes into these decisions (is it automated? How many people are involved? How much discretion is given to individual employees? What are the legal implications if Tumblr did nothing?) that would be interesting and informative.
- sowbug 9y ago
  This isn't a court of law. Intuition is permitted.
sheraz 9y ago
Tumblr always felt like an odd place for anything academic or serious. Am I alone in that thought?
- mcguire 9y ago
  Not at all.
sverige 9y ago
This is one of the taboo subjects of our times. It's ok to be a jihadi and post your stuff, but to criticize the jihadi culture and expose its inner workings is not ok since it implies moral judgment. We can't have any of that.
- archgoon 9y ago
  There is no evidence that is the case. In fact, the linked article says: 'I assume he has been suspended because Tumblr thinks Chris is spreading jihadi propaganda' Which would be Tumblr doing the exact opposite of what you say they do.
  - sverige 9y ago
    But then he goes on to say that "Suspending his account makes all the less sense considering the numerous genuine jihadi propaganda blogs that Tumblr has not taken action against." Which would be Tumblr doing the exact thing I said they did, as are the down voters.
hellbanner 9y ago
Are jihadist's tumblrs suspended?
JCzynski 9y ago
As it is said on Tumblr itself: "This Blue Fucking Hellsite"

31 points by gee_totes 9y ago

this brings into discussion what identifying propaganda actually entails when corner cases like this pop up. interesting circumstances. it makes me wonder: if you're actively doing research on these modern day areas of conflict and the culture that's in them, would you rather ask for forgiveness or permission when posting your material to a site that monitors material of that nature? and if it was so easy to gain forgiveness, what would stop people from framing said areas of conflict in different lights under the guise of research?

ben0x539 9y ago
I imagine asking a major social media platform for permission is not gonna get anyone anywhere. What should stop people is looking into whether the framing is obviously fake.
pvg 9y ago
I can't see how one would ponder either of these things before the much simpler 'is this a good platform on which to distribute my research on a highly sensitive topic' and then somehow arrive at 'yes, yes Tumblr is'.
- imode 9y ago
  serious question: where would you rather put it? new information develops every day, and I'm not sure where you'd post such information. though I agree, tumblr isn't exactly my first thought. :P
  - pvg 9y ago
    I have no idea, it's just that if this was my job, I'd probably think long and hard about it and likely wouldn't come up with tumblr. This guy seems to be a serious academic: http://www.belfercenter.org/person/christopher-anzalone http://www.belfercenter.org/person/christopher-anzalone Maybe at an academic institution would be best. Tumblr seems like an obviously iffy choice with a high risk of the work being misidentified/misinterpreted and then tossed out.
- wordupmaking 9y ago
  I can't believe that apparently some people see "Tumblr" but not the "researcher employed by NATO". It's just text and images and video, the "place" where it's at matters only for the people having to pay for pipes, really. Some of the best things in the world get posted in totally random places, it has always been thus.
  - pvg 9y ago
    The 'place' matters an awful lot. For instance, it's perfectly fine to take a poop in your own bathroom. Something being digital doesn't magically free us from context and norms.

k-mcgrady 9y ago

Somebody's account has been suspended. Ok, why? "I assume he has been suspended because Tumblr thinks Chris is spreading jihadi propaganda.". So (unless it wasn't posted for some reason) nothing to back this up at all and we actually don't know why he was suspended.

jlarocco 9y ago
What's your point? If Tumblr doesn't want bad publicity over it then they should tell people why their accounts are being closed. They can't be bothered, so it's left to rumor and speculation.
keyboardhitter 9y ago
Tumblr has a bad reputation for suspending / terminating blogs with little to no reason. I do wish they were more transparent about their actions.
ben0x539 9y ago
So we're not allowed to draw inferences now? It's not like tumblr is gonna issue a press release to spell it out, so waiting for that before talking about the thing seems counterproductive.
- archgoon 9y ago
  Signal is preferred to noise. If you have actually worked at Tumblr, or another social company that has to deal with blocking accounts, and can provide some analysis of what goes into these decisions (is it automated? How many people are involved? How much discretion is given to individual employees? What are the legal implications if Tumblr did nothing?) that would be interesting and informative.
sowbug 9y ago
This isn't a court of law. Intuition is permitted.

sheraz 9y ago

Tumblr always felt like an odd place for anything academic or serious. Am I alone in that thought?

mcguire 9y ago
Not at all.

sverige 9y ago

This is one of the taboo subjects of our times. It's ok to be a jihadi and post your stuff, but to criticize the jihadi culture and expose its inner workings is not ok since it implies moral judgment. We can't have any of that.

archgoon 9y ago
There is no evidence that is the case. In fact, the linked article says: 'I assume he has been suspended because Tumblr thinks Chris is spreading jihadi propaganda' Which would be Tumblr doing the exact opposite of what you say they do.
- sverige 9y ago
  But then he goes on to say that "Suspending his account makes all the less sense considering the numerous genuine jihadi propaganda blogs that Tumblr has not taken action against." Which would be Tumblr doing the exact thing I said they did, as are the down voters.

hellbanner 9y ago

Are jihadist's tumblrs suspended?

JCzynski 9y ago

As it is said on Tumblr itself: "This Blue Fucking Hellsite"