With millions and millions of content being published 24/7, the task of keeping the internet a user-friendly place becomes a mounting challenge for small and large businesses alike.
In an era where consumers spend more time in the virtual world and with the alarming increase in false content and misinformation, content moderation services must adapt to the ever-changing digital landscape.
We have the world at our fingertips, but how can we feel safer in these digital spaces? How is content moderation evolving in the digital age?
Content Moderation: The What’s and Why’s
The first question is, what is content moderation?
Whenever harmful content is published online, a content moderator may block or remove it to ensure user safety. The process of monitoring and screening content online is called content moderation.
Content moderation in social media is performed by social media content moderators. They are focused on reviewing user-generated content (UGC) and ensuring they don’t violate any community guidelines and policies.
Since most digital interactions are done on social media channels, social media content moderators are responsible for interacting with users and mediating conflict. They may also need to reach out to the authorities in case of illegal content.
So, why is content moderation important? Content moderation helps maintain a positive user experience by protecting them from content that contains hate speech, violence, and anything that may affect their psychological well-being.
Content moderation on social media is also crucial for businesses that utilize social media in their marketing campaigns. According to AdWeek, 85% of consumers are more influenced by UGC than the brands’ content. Thus, social media moderation services have become a necessity for upholding brand reputation.
Content Moderation Strategies
Now that we know how content moderation works and why it is important, it is also essential to know what strategies are being used by content moderators for effective moderation.
1. Community Self-Policing
With the dawn of online communities, moderators also rely on the efforts of platform users to flag and report inappropriate content. This method allows moderators to focus on complex cases requiring more time and attention.
However, this form of reactive moderation should only be used in conjunction with other content moderation techniques. If used as a standalone solution, there is still a risk of sharing unwanted content that can potentially damage a brand’s image.
2. Manual Moderation
In manual moderation, a human moderator monitors and reviews all types of content published on a website or social media page. They usually have two approaches: pre-moderation and post-moderation.
In pre-moderation, all UGCs are screened by social media content moderators before they are published on the platform. Meanwhile, in post-moderation, all types of content are instantly allowed on the platform and will be reviewed after publication.
However, there can be some lapses in these methods due to the diversity and high volume of shared content and the time-sensitive nature of social media moderation.
The Rise of Automated Content Moderation
Due to the limitations of human moderation, content moderation services have adopted automated moderation systems to optimize the process. There are two types of automated content systems: rule-based and artificial intelligence or AI-based.
In rule-based moderation, pre-defined rules and guidelines are applied to determine if the user-submitted content is safe to be posted on the platform. The system automatically filters specific keywords, identifies spam, blocks offensive and explicit language, and removes harmful content.
Although this system is simple and easy to implement, it may encounter challenges in handling nuanced content that requires contextual analysis. Due to this limitation, some content may be incorrectly flagged or removed (false positive), or some violations may remain overlooked (false negative).
Luckily, a more sophisticated AI-based system can overcome these difficulties. Using machine learning algorithms, UGCs can be analyzed on a larger scale. Moreover, it uses advanced techniques for image and video moderation as well as understanding nuanced content.
Advantages of AI-powered Content Moderation Services
Today, around 86% of established companies use UGC as a part of their digital marketing strategy. Therefore, embracing AI-powered content moderation services can benefit large businesses.
- Scalability
As UGC continues to rise exponentially, it is more efficient to use AI-based content moderation techniques. These systems can handle different types of content in large quantities.
- Real-time Processing
Another advantage of an AI-based content moderation system is it can handle bulks of data in real-time. It can quickly review and filter content as it is being generated, reducing the risk of illicit and offensive content being viewed by consumers.
- Adaptability
Since these AI systems run through machine learning models, they can be trained to adapt to changing trends in digital content. Using datasets, the system can continuously learn and address new types of violations.
The Need For Human Moderators
With the emergence of AI-powered content moderation tools comes a pressing concern—do we still need human moderators?
Despite the promising benefits of automated content moderation, we cannot completely remove human moderators from the equation. There are still some limitations to using AI tools in safeguarding user content.
For instance, building an accurate and reliable automated system is a time-consuming task that requires large amounts of datasets.
Additionally, it is prone to algorithmic bias, which can result in misjudgment of violations. It can also lead to discrimination against certain groups and favorability towards specific ideologies.
To ensure fairness and transparency, human moderators should still be at the forefront of content moderation. They are more equipped to make decisions, especially in complex cases with high-risk content and a higher degree of complexity. They are also capable of adapting to UGC trends and evolving user behavior.
The Future of Content Moderation
AI technology is a powerful tool in content moderation. By using an AI-based automated system along with the expertise of human moderators, we can build a safer environment on social media and other digital spaces for the years to come.
NEXT READ: Content Moderation Services: The Key to Maintaining a Healthy Online Community