• by Colin Kirkland , December 13, 2024

Since going public earlier this year, Bluesky has gained millions of users by deeming itself a safer social-media space than its direct competitor X.

However, the decentralized microblogging platform is now under fire from thousands of users who want Bluesky to ban Jesse Singal, a writer and podcast host known for spreading rhetoric that has been viewed as anti-trans.

Within 12 days of joining Bluesky, Singal has become the most-blocked user on the platform, with over 18,000 users (including the pop star Lizzo) signing a petition to ban him, while also reporting Singal's account. This prompted the platform to ban him, reinstate his account, and then allow users to opt out of seeing his posts.

However, as noted by TechCrunch, Bluesky users are demanding that he be banned entirely. Bluesky's response will set a precedent for the social media’s approach to safety and account moderation moving forward.

Prior to joining Bluesky, Singal attracted the attention of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) for spreading anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, misinformation and harm about transgender people in his published writings, including a cover story he wrote for The Atlantic.

In direct opposition to X, Bluesky hired the platform's former employee Aaron Rodericks to head its Trust and Safety team this past February.

Rodericks has since touted the platform's complex and user-specific approach to content moderation and safety on Bluesky, promising to double down on election misinformation during the 2024 U.S. presidential election, and to keep its online communities safe.

“There is an urgent global need for a social network that can safely and effectively meet the needs of communities and individuals,” said Rodericks in a statement announcing his position at Bluesky. “People expect social media to provide a healthy level of built-in moderation, with clearly stated rules that are applied consistently.”

Since its public launch, Bluesky has been popular among LGBTQ users and marginalized groups due to its variety of custom tools that align with the personalized concept of decentralized social media. Bluesky offers block lists, layered moderation, custom feeds, custom algorithms, labeling services, and more to its 25 million active users.

In general, users are able to block the users who they don't want to see. Singal, however, has become the first account to urge Bluesky's user base, which fears the onboarding of Singal's followers, to demand an all-out ban, forcing the platform itself to make a final decision.

Singal has yet to be found to have violated the platform's terms of service and guidelines, but users are attempting to find evidence that he has.

In response to the user backlash, Bluesky said it has received more reports in two days than in all of last year, and has “integrated new systems” and “quadrupled” its moderation team to try and keep up with the demand.

“The current controversies reveal weaknesses in the clarity of our Community Guidelines and failures in our communications,” the company added. “This has led to understandable confusion about how we interpret our guidelines. We need to be more transparent – without revealing to bad actors how to circumvent our systems.”