In the past month, I’ve been privileged to publish two articles in The Atlantic’s Technology section and several posts over at Microsoft Research’s Social Media Collective. I’m posting links to them here so anyone following on RSS or checking my archives can be aware of them.

The Tragedy of the Digital Commons: Advocates for fairer, safer online spaces are turning to the conservation movement for inspiration:
“How do you fix a broken system that isn’t yours to repair?” In this Atlantic article, I look at the work of community volunteers to offer peer support and also advocate for change, in online platforms like Amazon Mechanical Turk, and along Boston’s Charles River. I try to set out a long-term hope for what it might mean to be proud of our online spaces in the long term.

Were All Those Rainbow Profile Photos Another Facebook Study?:
In this Atlantic article, I ask “Does the courage to visibly—if virtually—stand up for what a person believes in have an effect on that person’s social network, or is it just cheap, harmless posturing?” with examples from America’s civil rights history and studies on profile image changes on Facebook.

Recognizing the Work of Reddit’s Moderators: Summer Research Project :
What does it take to keep online communities going? In this post over at Microsoft Research, I make a statement describing my summer research and offering promises on how I will treat the people who’s work I’m studying.

Imagining a Sustainable and Inclusive Approach to Child Safety Online: A liveblog of Mitali Thakor’s talk at the Berkman Center.

The Quantified Self; Newsfeed: Created by you?; Holding Crowds Accountable To The Public; EVE Online and World of Darkness: A liveblog of lightning talks given by my Microsoft Research colleages at the Berkman Center.