RS Wood
2017-08-16 15:54:12 UTC
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/15/technology/discord-chat-app-alt-right.html?&moduleDetail=section-news-2&action=click&contentCollection=Media®ion=Footer&module=MoreInSection&version=WhatsNext&contentID=WhatsNext&pgtype=article
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The alt-right, as the loose constellation of far-right political groups
that includes white nationalists and neo-Nazis is known, uses many
mainstream tech platforms to distribute its message: Twitter, Facebook,
and YouTube for recruiting and public broadcasting, Reddit and 4Chan
for lighthearted memes and trolling, and, until Monday, Discord for
private group communication. Many of these companies resisted efforts
to cut off the activists, arguing that as long as their activities
weren’t illegal, they were simply using the tools as any others would.
But that dynamic has taken a sharp turn in recent weeks. The industry
has been clashing with the alt-right over free speech, and companies
now appear further galvanized by the violence in Charlottesville,
perhaps realizing that remaining neutral on hateful movements is no
longer a viable option. In recent days, large tech companies like
GoDaddy, Google and Airbnb have taken action to remove white
nationalists and neo-Nazis from their services. Others, like Twitter
and Facebook, have banned individual users who have threatened violence
or contributed to hate movements.
Partly, these are self-preservation instincts kicking in — no company
wants to end up like Reddit, which has struggled to shake its
reputation as a den of toxicity — but it is also indicative of an
emerging consensus around the moral responsibilities of tech platforms.
Like most platforms, Discord never meant to become a virtual home of
the alt-right. It started in 2015 as a chat app for video gamers, where
fans of games like World of Warcraft could form teams and talk about
strategy. Over the next several years, as gamers invited their friends
to the app, it became one of the hottest start-ups in Silicon Valley,
growing to more than 45 million members and raising nearly $100 million
from top tech investors.
But Discord also attracted far-right political groups, whose members
were drawn to the app’s privacy and anonymity features. Discord allows
users to form private, invitation-only chat groups invisible to those
outside the app, and it allows a high degree of anonymity, making it an
ideal choice for people looking to avoid detection or surveillance.
Perhaps most importantly, it is largely self-policed — administrators
of servers, as Discord’s group chat rooms are known, set their own
rules and are responsible for keeping their members in line.
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The alt-right, as the loose constellation of far-right political groups
that includes white nationalists and neo-Nazis is known, uses many
mainstream tech platforms to distribute its message: Twitter, Facebook,
and YouTube for recruiting and public broadcasting, Reddit and 4Chan
for lighthearted memes and trolling, and, until Monday, Discord for
private group communication. Many of these companies resisted efforts
to cut off the activists, arguing that as long as their activities
weren’t illegal, they were simply using the tools as any others would.
But that dynamic has taken a sharp turn in recent weeks. The industry
has been clashing with the alt-right over free speech, and companies
now appear further galvanized by the violence in Charlottesville,
perhaps realizing that remaining neutral on hateful movements is no
longer a viable option. In recent days, large tech companies like
GoDaddy, Google and Airbnb have taken action to remove white
nationalists and neo-Nazis from their services. Others, like Twitter
and Facebook, have banned individual users who have threatened violence
or contributed to hate movements.
Partly, these are self-preservation instincts kicking in — no company
wants to end up like Reddit, which has struggled to shake its
reputation as a den of toxicity — but it is also indicative of an
emerging consensus around the moral responsibilities of tech platforms.
Like most platforms, Discord never meant to become a virtual home of
the alt-right. It started in 2015 as a chat app for video gamers, where
fans of games like World of Warcraft could form teams and talk about
strategy. Over the next several years, as gamers invited their friends
to the app, it became one of the hottest start-ups in Silicon Valley,
growing to more than 45 million members and raising nearly $100 million
from top tech investors.
But Discord also attracted far-right political groups, whose members
were drawn to the app’s privacy and anonymity features. Discord allows
users to form private, invitation-only chat groups invisible to those
outside the app, and it allows a high degree of anonymity, making it an
ideal choice for people looking to avoid detection or surveillance.
Perhaps most importantly, it is largely self-policed — administrators
of servers, as Discord’s group chat rooms are known, set their own
rules and are responsible for keeping their members in line.
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RS Wood <***@therandymon.com>
RS Wood <***@therandymon.com>