Personalizing Content Moderation on Social Media: User Perspectives on Moderation Choices, Interface Design, and Labor

Abstract

Social media platforms moderate content for each user by incorporating the outputs of both platform-wide content moderation systems and, in some cases, user-configured personal moderation preferences. However, it is unclear (1) how end users perceive the choices and affordances of different kinds of personal content moderation tools, and (2) how the introduction of personalization impacts user perceptions of platforms' content moderation responsibilities. This paper investigates end users' perspectives on personal content moderation tools by conducting an interview study with a diverse sample of 24 active social media users. We probe interviewees' preferences using simulated personal moderation interfaces, including word filters, sliders for toxicity levels, and boolean toxicity toggles. We also examine the labor involved for users in choosing moderation settings and present users' attitudes about the roles and responsibilities of social media platforms and other stakeholders toward moderation. We discuss how our findings can inform design solutions to improve transparency and controllability in personal content moderation tools.

Decentralizing Platform Power: A Design Space of Multi-Level Governance in Online Social Platforms

“…While we focus on middle levels in this work, examining units in other levels can also reveal valuable insights. For example, Jhaver et al (2023) show how end users deploy platform-offered artificial intelligence (AI) tools to personalize the governance they experience.…”