'The Cleaners' Who Scrub Social Media

Summary

The documentary 'The Cleaners' exposes the unseen world of content moderation, revealing how social media giants outsource to third-party companies, often located in the Philippines, to remove objectionable content. Content moderators face disturbing images daily, raising concerns about their mental health with little support. The filmmakers explore the secretive practices of tech companies and the human cost of digital cleaning, questioning the future of content control on the internet.

Takeaways

• 📽️ 'The Cleaners' is a documentary about the secretive world of digital content moderators who determine what stays or gets deleted on social media platforms.
• 🌐 Major social media platforms like Facebook hire third-party companies, often in the Philippines, to remove objectionable content.
• 👁️ Content moderators review up to 25,000 questionable images daily, many of which are deeply disturbing, raising concerns about their mental health.
• 🧠 The lack of psychological support for these moderators, who face highly disturbing content, is a major issue, with high suicide rates reported among workers.
• 🗣️ Despite the challenges, many content moderators feel proud of their work, believing they play an important role in keeping the internet safe.
• ❓ Moderation of harmful content is still largely done by humans, as algorithms cannot yet accurately interpret complex or sensitive images and videos.
• 🛑 The filmmakers struggled to get responses from tech companies like Facebook when reaching out for comments on the documentary.
• 🖥️ Facebook’s claim of hiring 20,000 moderators was questioned, with doubts about whether all of them are full-time employees or include outsourced workers.
• 🎬 The documentary had to recreate scenes of content moderation since access to the actual workplaces was impossible due to the secretive nature of the industry.
• 🤔 The filmmakers raise broader concerns about whether the control of online content should rest in the hands of a few major Silicon Valley companies.

Q & A

What is the main focus of the documentary 'The Cleaners'?

'The Cleaners' focuses on the hidden world of digital content moderation, exploring how third-party companies are hired by social media giants like Facebook to remove objectionable content from their platforms.

Why are social media platforms outsourcing content moderation to third-party companies?

Social media platforms outsource content moderation to third-party companies because they need to maintain control over what stays on their platforms, while appearing to uphold principles of free expression. Outsourcing allows them to process a vast amount of content quickly and at a lower cost.

What challenges do content moderators face in their jobs?

Content moderators often face psychological challenges due to the disturbing and violent content they must view, including child pornography, beheadings, and terrorist videos. Many suffer from mental health issues such as PTSD, but they rarely receive adequate psychological support.

Where are most of the content moderators located, and why?

Most content moderators are located in the Philippines. The work is outsourced to developing countries like the Philippines where young workers, often in their teens or early 20s, perform this job at a lower cost.

What prompted the filmmakers to investigate the topic of content moderation?

The filmmakers were inspired to investigate content moderation after learning about a child abuse video uploaded on Facebook in 2013 that was shared 16,000 times before being removed. This raised questions about how such content is managed and moderated on social media.

How do the content moderators themselves feel about their work?

Despite the challenges, many content moderators are proud of their work. They believe that their role is essential in maintaining the safety of the internet, ensuring that platforms are not flooded with harmful content.

Why did some content moderators agree to participate in the documentary, despite the risks?

The content moderators who participated in the documentary had recently left their jobs, which minimized the risk of repercussions. Others who were still employed participated anonymously, contributing via chat protocols.

Did the filmmakers face any resistance from the tech companies featured in the documentary?

The filmmakers attempted to contact tech companies like Facebook multiple times, even sending them the finished documentary. However, they received no response or pushback from the companies.

What ethical concerns does the documentary raise about the use of human moderators?

The documentary raises ethical concerns about the toll this job takes on human moderators, who are exposed to disturbing content with little to no psychological support. It questions whether outsourcing content moderation to low-wage workers in developing countries is an ethical solution.

What are some broader questions raised by the documentary regarding the future of social media moderation?

'The Cleaners' raises questions about who should control and regulate digital platforms. Should a few major companies have the power to decide what is seen online, or should the public have more influence in shaping digital spaces? The documentary suggests that these issues are only beginning to be understood.