Twitter used to brag that it was “the free speech wing of the free speech party,” but recently the party was crashed by the company’s security team, who launched a protocol aimed to decrease users’ exposure to abusive content.  It’s both a step forward and a step back.  Forward because it’s effective.  Back because it’s a tactic that’s been around since the 90s.

If a user begins tweeting abusive messages, triggering the protocol will cause them to be seen only by those following them.  If the follower retweets the message, it won’t be visible to those who follow that user.  In the 90s, making posted content only visible to the poster was called “throwing the Bozo flag” or being sent to “banned camp.”  Several of my larger clients still successfully use that tactic.

At Twitter, the restriction is temporary, usually lasting 12 hours, and, unlike Bozo flags of the past, the affected user is notified with a “We’ve temporarily limited some of your account features” because of “potentially abusive behavior.”

While there is room for improvement (such as an appeals process for those who feel they weren’t breaking the rules), a sizable “free speech” backlash, and accusations that the company is making the changes to become a more lucrative to potential buyers, I applaud Twitter’s efforts to reduce trolling.  As Twitter’s vice president of engineering Ed Ho said, this is one step toward effectively reducing abuse and the campaign will continue until there is “a significant impact that people can feel.”  I’m feeling it.

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Lego Life’s concerns for the safety of its users are evident in many ways: users under 13 must have their parents provide email permission, profiles are avatars that users create from a list of traits, usernames are randomly generated from a three-word sequence (i.e. ChairmanWilyDolphin), all user-generated content is premoderated, no photos are allowed that contain human faces, and most responses are either controlled by using emojis from a special keyboard or selected from a list of phrases.  Users are allowed to use their own words when responding to official Lego content.  A version for the web is in development.

Lego Life is a win-win for both the company and its customers.  The app increases brand loyalty and keeps kids safe. When they aren’t using it, they are presumably building new Lego creations.  That’s just fine with Lego Group’s senior director Rob Lowe, who says of kids who use the app, “One of its core purposes is to put their iPhone down and go do something else.”

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Last week, British tabloids, particularly The Sun and Daily Mail, angered Prince Harry enough to issue a public statement about their treatment of his relationship with U.S. actress Meghan Markle.  On November 8, the Kensington Palace Communications Secretary, on behalf of Prince Harry, asked the press to “pause and reflect before any further damage is done.”

In the statement, Harry accused the tabloids of a “wave of abuse” that threatened the safety of Markle and her friends and family.  The abuses included references to intimate scenes from the “Suits” TV show appearing on adult websites, as well as references to Markle being bi-racial (her father is white and her mother is black) and a divorcee, which led to vicious sexist and racist trolling in the articles’ comment sections.

What the tabloids print is up to their editors, who face legal challenges if the content goes too far (I’m still wondering how the Daily Mail got away with the headline: “”Harry’s girl is (almost) straight outta Compton: Gang-scarred home of her mother revealed”), but the comments are easy to control with proper moderation.  If conduct guidelines are easy to find, explicit, and regularly swept by the moderation team, Harry should have no reason for complaint.

Are your comments sections full of sexist and racist trolls?  Are you afraid that Harry may complain about you next?  If so, contact us to find out how we can help you put the trolls back under the bridge.

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What a difference four years makes.  In the 2012 London Olympics, USA gymnast Gabby Douglas was a standout, leading her team to a gold medal in the team event (competing in all four apparatus events), as well as winning a gold medal in the individual all-around.  She was the first African-American woman in Olympics history to win the event, as well as the first American gymnast to win gold medals in team and all-around events at the same Olympics. Her accomplishments garnered her several product endorsement deals, acting roles, and a reality television show.

In tryouts and qualifying events for the 2016 Olympics, Douglas lost her leadership edge as teammates scored higher than her.  When the Olympics began, she helped her team advance to the team final and made it into the final for the individual uneven bars event.  Though she scored the third-highest in the all-around qualifying round, the two above her were team members.  Because only two members of a team can advance, Douglas was not allowed to compete in the final and cameras caught her looking unsupportive of her teammates when they were doing their routines.

Though Douglas only competed in one apparatus event, the USA team won the gold medal in the team event.  In her individual uneven bars event final, Douglas placed seventh.  During the gold medal ceremony for the team event, Douglas was visibly dejected and, unlike her teammates, did not place her hand over her heart as the national anthem was played.  Asked why she refrained from the gesture, her explanation was that she was “overwhelmed.”

As expected, the backlash on Twitter was tremendous and vitriolic. Fueled in part by an angry editorial by Bill Plaschke in the Los Angeles Times newspaper, a typical tweet said: “Gabby Douglas refused to place her hand over her heart during the medal ceremony. Straight disrespect!”  Douglas responded to the criticism with a weak apology, but her mother, in a CNN interview, said that her daughter was “devastated” by the negativity.

I’m active in several efforts to stem online bullying, but Douglas, as a public figure in a competitive sport with a global following, needs to be counseled about how to handle public input, especially on the Internet. Letting the trolls know that they hurt you is the wrong response.  It signals that their intent to cause harm was successful.  If Douglas continues to compete, Internet users will continue to speak out when she falters.  The correct choices are to ignore it or to fight back with a confident attitude.  I’m sure that she will get back on track.  It’s part of winning.

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