It was not pioneered by Facebook at all. Before the web was even a thing, there was a split between dialup BBSes. In my area it was WWIV vs. Wildcat. The WWI

It was not pioneered by Facebook at all. Before the web was even a thing, there was a split between dialup BBSes. In my area it was WWIV vs. Wildcat. The WWIV boards were all pseudonymous, open and welcoming. There was pretty much no discrimination there (because no one knew your gender, age, religion, skin color, or class unless you told them). They were typically run by a mix of ordinary people, including those who would be discriminated against in real life. The Wildcat boards in my area were all real-name only, enter your address and phone number to register an account and the sysop will call to verify. Those were the ones who claimed to be more civil, but were rife with discrimination, bullying, and snobbery. They were typically run by the more wealthy and powerful, who never faced discrimination. The early internet, with IRC, usenet, web forums, and even some way into the blog phase, seemed to have followed the WWIV path, and it was good. But then the wealthy and powerful wanted more control and more data to discriminate on, and they resurrected the old real-names policies.