The topic of toxic and hateful online gaming communities has risen in the headlines in recent weeks, particularly as the matter earned governmental attention. In the spirit of fighting the four year-long rise in online hate and harassment, voice moderation software developer Modulate is joining hands with the Anti-Defamation League in order to improve its ToxMod voice chat moderation tool.
The partnership will effectively take learnings about online extremism and hatred from ADL’s Center for Technology and Society and use them to further refine ToxMod’s ability to monitor and flag voice chat, with the ultimate goal of making online gaming spaces safer for all. The partnership is also said to expand the ADL’s research capabilities in turn, letting the org tap into Modulate’s experts and resources to “double down on its recent research and invest in longer-term research projects as well as in-the-moment responses to gaming news from an anti-hate lens” according to Modulate’s blog.
“The ADL’s research has been a driving force in Modulate’s development of ToxMod to fight toxic behavior in online games,” notes Modulate’s Hank Howie. “Becoming an ADL Corporate Partner Against Hate is a real validation of our efforts to address the growing problem of toxic behavior.”
