Various Twitch streamers are planning on spending September 1 away from the popular platform in response to racist, sexist, transphobic, or otherwise xenophobic attacks made against streamers from marginalized communities. These attacks include what many Twitch users have labeled "hate raids," which involve bad actors sending bot accounts to harass their targets.
This protest follows Twitch's response to the #TwitchDoBetter movement on Twitter earlier this month. The movement was started in order to address instances of hate speech that continue to plague the platform, with trolls and aggressive harassers regularly finding new ways around Twitch's various moderating tools. Twitch's response to the movement included a promise to bolster its defenses against hate speech and harassment through improved bot and ban-evasion detection systems.
Several Twitch streamers found the company's response to be inadequate and flaccid, spurring the upcoming #ADayOffTwitch event. As reported by PC Gamer, a number of popular streamers, including Rek It Raven (who started the #TwitchDoBetter movement) and Lucia Everblack, are planning to take a day off of the site on September 1 to show solidarity with the victims of these hate raids. Other creators such as Deere, who was a recent victim of harassment on Twitch, have shown support for the movement on social media.
Millions of people consume Twitch content on a regular basis, with the platform itself typically taking a sizable cut of the money made from streamers via subscriptions and donations. This has made the platform an immense success both financially and culturally, with that success being built primarily on the backs of the independent creators making content on the site. These creators are seeking more support from the platform that hosts them, requesting additional tools to protect underrepresented groups that may be more vulnerable. It's not clear whether this strike will force Twitch to take more drastic measures to combat hate speech.
It was only a few months ago that Twitch came under fire for its handling of sexual assault allegations by some of its streamers. The new trend of hate raids presents another controversy for the platform to wrestle with. The nature of this new trend of harassment may cause some streamers to worry about their safety and the integrity of the streaming website. As one of the biggest names in online entertainment, Twitch appears willing to explore better ways to fight back against toxicity for the sake of its users and contributors.
Source: PC Gamer