Twitch streamers targeted by hate raids unite under #TwitchDoBetter to boycott the platform

San Francisco, California - The decision by to Twitch to introduce new transgender, Black, and disabled tags has backfired badly. "Hate raids" against streamers who use them are soaring and they say that Twitch is doing little to nothing about it.

Twitch streamers, particularly those identifying as belonging to a minority group, are being more frequently harasses online than ever before, with seemingly no help from the platform (stock image).
Twitch streamers, particularly those identifying as belonging to a minority group, are being more frequently harasses online than ever before, with seemingly no help from the platform (stock image).  © 123RF/ dragoscondrea

A streamer may be right in the middle of gameplay when their chat feed is suddenly barraged with hundreds of hateful messages from dozens of accounts all at once, targeting them for any number of reasons. The messages are vile, but are craftily tailored so as not to trigger the algorithms that could get their authors into trouble.

According to The Washington Post, streamers have continually reported being the victims of hate raids, with no real, useable tools having been provided by Twitch to combat all the harassment.

Various streamers have suggested solutions such as requiring new accounts to exist for a certain length of time before being able to interact with others, banning the ability to continue to view a channel that they've already harassed, and fully banning IP-addresses that have been marked as coming from a harasser.

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The platform could also require two-factor authentication to deter trolls from creating new accounts just to target their victims. And although Twitch allegedly removed an astounding 7.5 million bot accounts, many more are generated every day for the explicit purpose of harassment.

Now streamers say they're turning to alternative platforms that listen to their complaints and, just as importantly, don't take a 50% commission. In fact, as WaPo pointed out, Twitch's lack of transparency about their payment system may have something to do with the fact that the highest paid streamers who have negotiated lower commission fees are all white and male.

Already this week, Apple employees began their own movement to advocate for change and protection from discrimination and harassment in the workplace. Will Twitch follow suit?

Cover photo: 123RF/ dragoscondrea

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