American Sweatshop depicts content moderation as the hell it is
American Sweatshop depicts content moderation as the hell it is In American Sweatshop, German director Uta Briesewitz’s new psychological drama, every character working at a content moderation firm understands that ingesting horrific images is part of the job. They have all seen the disturbing footage uploaded to social media, and they know how important it […]
Can Luigi Mangione get too big to jail?
Can Luigi Mangione get too big to jail? The first people in line on Tuesday, I was told, started camping out on the sidewalk two days ago. Luigi Mangione, the man accused of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024, was due in court at 9AM ET for a hearing in one of […]
Charlie Kirk’s death got complicated by gamer brainrot
Charlie Kirk's death got complicated by gamer brainrot Editor’s note: This issue of Regulator was sent to subscribers prior to the release of the indictment against Tyler Robinson. Though we have more hints about Robinson’s motives, what follows is still accurate about the videogame-referencing memes being a red herring. Hello and welcome to Regulator. For […]
Discord is distancing itself from the Charlie Kirk shooting suspect
Discord is distancing itself from the Charlie Kirk shooting suspect Discord denies that the suspect accused of killing Charlie Kirk used the messaging platform to discuss his crime, following the service getting mentioned by law enforcement in a press conference — and after accusations that it helped radicalize the alleged shooter, Tyler Robinson. In a statement […]
Mastodon is bringing quote posts to the fediverse
Mastodon is bringing quote posts to the fediverse Mastodon is officially rolling out quote posts. Starting next week, you’ll see an option to quote another user by selecting the repost — or “boost” — button, allowing you to add your thoughts to someone else’s post. The decentralized platform initially planned not to launch quote posts […]
Even killings are content
Even killings are content Minutes after news that right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk had been shot at a planned campus event at Utah Valley University, the wheels of social media engagement farming and clout chasing had already begun to grind to life. Kirk, despite being in his 30s, was a mainstay on college campuses around the […]
How the Democrats keep copying the MAGA influencer playbook (and failing)
How the Democrats keep copying the MAGA influencer playbook (and failing) Hello and welcome to Regulator. Today, I will attempt to regulate my own apoplexy. Recently, Wired published an article revealing the existence of a secret Democrat influencer incubator that trained liberal and progressive content creators to push coordinated messaging across their shared social media […]
TikTok is now letting everyone DM each other with voice memos and pictures
TikTok is now letting everyone DM each other with voice memos and pictures Every platform wants to be the place you hang with friends — even Spotify as of this week — so it’s apparently time for TikTok to shore up its direct messaging feature! It told TechCrunch that over the next few weeks, all […]
4Chan and Kiwi Farms file joint lawsuit against the UK
4Chan and Kiwi Farms file joint lawsuit against the UK On Wednesday, 4Chan and Kiwi Farms, two of the most controversial social media sites on the internet, filed a federal lawsuit against the British government, arguing that the requirements of the UK’s Online Safety Act infringe on their Constitutional rights as American corporations. In a […]
Will Trump help 4Chan escape the UK’s internet police?
Will Trump help 4Chan escape the UK's internet police? Will Trump help 4Chan escape the UK’s internet police? After the United Kingdom began enforcing its sweeping Online Safety Act in April, British regulator Ofcom served violation notices to three notorious sites: 4chan, Gab, and Kiwi Farms, each of which risked multimillion-dollar fines. Late last week, […]