Kendzior Case-Study

There was recently a flurry of attention and dismay over Sarah Kendzior having been suspended from Bluesky by its moderation system. Since the state of the art in trust and safety is evolving fast, this is worth a closer look. In particular, Mastodon has a really different approach, so let’s see how the Kendzior drama would have played out there.

Disclosures · I’m a fan of Ms Kendzior, for example check out her recent When I Loved New York; fine writing and incisive politics. I like the Bluesky experience and have warm feelings toward the team there, although my long-term social media bet is on Mastodon.

Back story · Back in early October, the Wall Street Journal published It’s Finally Time to Give Johnny Cash His Due, an appreciation for Johnny’s music that I totally agreed with. In particular I liked its praise for American IV: The Man Comes Around which, recorded while he was more or less on his deathbed, is a masterpiece. It also said that, relative to other rockers, Johnny “can seem deeply uncool”.

Ms Kendzior, who is apparently also a Cash fan and furthermore thinks he’s cool, posted to Bluesky “I want to shoot the author of this article