Lately the creators on Twitch they were extremely targeted by hate raids, that is a set of insults by a large slice of users. Twitch needs a better approach to protect its streamers, it’s time to take action.
Insults on Twitch are more and more present, it’s time to take matters into our own hands
Twitch has become increasingly popular in recent years, with many able to make a living on the platform. While many users stream playing video games, there are tons of other types of content creators on the site. In the past, Twitch also has supported the marginalized voices, especially during periods like Black History Month or Pride Month. Recently, however, many of these creators have been targeted with incursions of hatred at a pace never seen before, occurring almost daily and, in some cases, for hours.
“Hate raids,” hate raids, are not new to Twitch but are hitting the platform at record speed in recent times. Basically, a creator takes their viewers to another Twitch channel by writing hateful, often racist and / or homophobic messages in their chat. Hate raids have become increasingly common and Twitch must recognize the problem head on.
*3 hours
It’s great, I’ve done zero gaming because they’ve
-doxed my name, my address, phone number
-stolen my photo and used it for accounts
-spammed Nazi flags
-spammed genitalsit’s great, being constantly hate raided. Can’t wait for the next product rollout! https://t.co/BAPbDIkcUM
— Ms. Vanessa B!, Lv. 35 State of the Sideeye 🏳️🌈 (@pleasantlytwstd) August 21, 2021
Hate raids are often accompanied by “follow-bot” attacks, i.e. tons of fake accounts follow the streamer’s channel. Follow-bots spam the chat with tons of new followers, which might sound like a good thing, but since they are fake profiles, they only damage the numbers of a streamer. These follow-bots need to be removed manually, taking extra time from streamers to delete accounts from the follower list.
How can Twitch fix this?
Precautions and security measures should have been in place long before hate raids became so famous. As GameRant explains, theburden shouldn’t be on the creators but rather on Twitch, to protect all of its users, especially those it loves to highlight during Black History Month and Pride Month.
The security tools they should be built into Twitch’s foundation. There needs to be a better filter when it comes to offensive language, especially insults that can be used to target marginalized identities. Twitch should be a safe place for all its users, and this begins by giving creators access to proper tools and having security measures in place that cannot be bypassed. There is only a follower-only chat mode and a list of banned words (which streamers need to create on their own channel). And Twitch should quickly close that gap.
In the last few hours, streamers have spread the hashtag #ADayOffTwitch inviting other users of the platform not to direct for the whole of September 1, 2021 as a sign of protest towards the platform.