[Air-L] CfP Content Moderation and Its Discontents

[Jacob Johanssen]

Hello everyone,
We have decided to *extend *the deadline for the below conference to *21
May 2023*.

On Tue, Mar 28, 2023 at 10:30 AM Jacob Johanssen <johanssenjacob at gmail.com>
wrote:

> *Content Moderation and Its Discontents*
>
> *An International Conference, St. Mary’s University (London, UK), 23 June
> 2023 *
>
> *Call for Papers*
>
>
>
> In recent years, content moderation on social media has become a contested
> topic. As forms of online extremism, harassment and hate speech have
> increased on major platforms, community guidelines and AI-based detection
> and moderation policies have been introduced to tighten regulation, yet
> such plans often fall short or are actively circumvented, as Elon Musk’s
> efforts at undoing what he regards as excessive restriction of “free
> speech” on Twitter demonstrate for instance. Some spaces on the internet
> are also notorious for their lax or inexistent moderation policies, such as
> Reddit or 4chan. In times of culture wars, many have also claimed an
> erosion of free speech in a climate of “cancel culture” in which it has
> allegedly become impossible to share particular viewpoints or ideas.
> Equally many have disputed the very existence of cancel culture and have
> pointed out that many instances of deplatforming or cancellation are mere
> shifts in discourses whereby voices who have been marginalised are now
> claiming their rightful place on the discursive stage.
>
>
>
> This conference takes the complex relationship between the facilitation
> and moderation of content and particularly of content that can broadly be
> labelled “problematic” as a starting point.  Opinions among politicians,
> tech experts, academics and others differ in relation to what types of
> content should be flagged or removed by platforms or if too restrictive
> regulation constitutes censorship. A blanket ban on “problematic” online
> content is unrealistic and perhaps counterproductive. While illegal content
> or posts that constitute hate speech such as death threats should surely be
> removed, the question of content moderation becomes more complex when it
> comes to “problematic” content such as images of self-harm, “pro-Ana”
> communities or the open discussion of mental health problems like
> suicidality or depression.
>
> This interdisciplinary conference invites papers that deal with the
> complexity of content moderation and associated topics from different
> perspectives.
>
>
>
> We invite critical papers that can address but are not limited to:
>
> -         The dynamics and functions of content moderation (flagging, up
> and downvoting, removing, etc.)
> -         Content moderators, labour and trauma
> -         Practices of in/visibility: shadow banning, soft blocking and
> other forms of disengagement
> -         Self and collective regulation (e.g. in fora)
> -         Content moderation, regulation and the law
> -         Culture wars and cancel culture
> -         Polarisation, filter bubbles and echo chambers
> -         Problematic content and mental health communities
> -         Shitstorms and online shaming
> -         Psychodynamics of social media and platforms
>
>
>
> This conference is organised by Jacob Johanssen (St. Mary’s University),
> Daniela Nadj (St. Mary’s University) and Susanne Benzel (Sigmund Freud
> Institute, University of Frankfurt) as part of the research project *Mapping
> Online Mental Illness Communities: History, Representation and Questions of
> Regulation*. Lunch and refreshments will be provided. It will be a hybrid
> event. In-person attendance is encouraged and virtual participation is
> possible.
>
>
>
> Please submit an abstract of 250-500 words by *08 May* to the organisers:
> jacob.johanssen at stmarys.ac.uk, daniela.nadj at stmarys.ac.uk and
> benzel at sigmund-freud-institut.de
>
>
>