Platform governance is getting something fundamentally wrong: Rather than focuing too narrowly on removing harmful content from individual platforms to battle misogynistic extremism (which overlook the emotional dynamics, infrastructural features and cross-platform migrations that allow extremist communities to adapt and proliferate) effective platform governance requires policy frameworks that operate at the ecosystem level. Governance must incorporate democratic oversight and address both the emotional and technological conditions that sustain misogynistic extremism on the Internet.
The current approach focuses on content takedowns on mainstream platforms, frequently pushing extremist communities toward alt-tech ecosystems with weak or nonexistent governance. Misogynistic extremism online thrives through means that often evade traditional moderation; a new approach is needed to address the factors that are allowing misogynistic extremism to proliferate.
