Substack Self-Regulation
Extremist who set himself aflame before the NYC Trial Court of Trump had posted a Substack Post to announce his self-destructive intent! We must have peer-review against the extreme right!
Substack is a wonderful community.
Through Substack, I am in close contact with experts:
· Jurist, Joyce Vance (University of Alabama Law School)
· Heather Cox Richardson (Professor of History, Boston College)
Substack has blessed me with friendships or fine artistic contacts in correspondence with wonderful persons, including:
· Alicia Norman
· Lorraine Evanoff
· Susan Niemann
· Diane K24
· Kiwiwriter47
· Patti Smith
· Kate Morgan Reade
· Sherman Alexie
· Pamela Leavey
· Gloria Horton-Young
· CellyBlue
· Somiah Nettles
And so many more wonderful, dear and good people, whom I befriend or whose artistic gifts I admire through correspondence.
Months ago there was protest within the Substack community about self-policing of allegedly pro-Nazi sites on the platform.
Well, today, the self-policing issue came to the fore on Substack.
I will leave you a link, but I do so only as a cautionary tale, and this is the polar opposite of any recommendation, but rather my unequivocal condemnation.
I believe it was a USA-Today article that linked me to this Substack posting of Max Azzarello, who immolated himself pathetically in front of the NYC Courthouse where Trump is being tried:
In this posting, which I perused with incredulity, Mr. Azzarello announced ahead of time his intent to complete this self-destructive, monstrous act in front of the NYC courthouse.
I will not dignify the posting with a summary. I do not urge you to read it. On the contrary, I condemn this posting.
I raise this issue to pose a query to all who have ears to hear:
With all of the goodness that Substack does – bringing me together with very fine experts and initiating some of my very finest of friendships:
How could Substack allow itself to be the Platform for such a monstrous act?
In January 2024, the Washington Post reported that Substack leadership eliminated some far-right writers, but a number of sound and good people believed more needed to be done.
See:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/01/10/substack-bans-nazis-newsletters-controversy/
See, too, this article from The Atlantic:
I personally am outraged that a deranged posting appeared today on this platform, which purports to explain why a man immolated himself before the NYC Courtroom where Trump is being tried.
Certainly today’s incident and the Substack posting requires serious inquiry!
I am afraid that on this I am a follower, not a leader.
In the coming days, I hope to see some of the more expert writers recommend remedial action!
Armando, you are 100% correct to be alarmed.
The whole approach by these open forum platforms, including Reddit and Twitter, to allow users to "self regulate" seems intended to not pierce the veil of Section 230 that "embodies that principle that we should all be responsible for our own actions and statements online, but generally not those of others. The law prevents most civil suits against users or services that are based on what others say."
That means Section 230 preserves these sites as "open forums" or "open marketplaces" where the owners of the marketplace are not responsible for actions of its customers i.e. users.
Trying to regulate customers or users puts the protections provided by Section 230 at risk.
That said, just like any open marketplace or open forum, where anyone is allowed their "soapbox," if someone is a threat to themselves and/or others, the marketplace should have an obligation to report the danger to authorities.
The fact that Substack's algorithms failed to pick up on this post and the threat of self immolation by the user seems irresponsible. But it's no illegal.
Just like abolishing the "Fairness doctrine" by the FCC, it's a slippery slope that can be a double edged sword.
Thanks—I wasn’t aware of the issue, but I agree Substack needs some self-regulation on several fronts.