But they can also seek out anyone who threatens their community. And be dicks to them on Twitter. Tech blogger Anil Dash has examined abuse and how it works on the internet. Today, he published a Medium article digging into his theory that online abuse follows a “well-defined pattern.” Here’s a quick look at the 14 steps that define how the online abuse playbook goes down, alongside a few of the most interesting or counter-intuitive points Dash makes: 1: A community forms 2: The community has a grievance 3: The community organizes 4: A community identity forms 5: Community leaders emerge, unacknowledged 6: The community starts to take action 7: A response 8: Targets are identified 9: Leaders direct the community to attack 10: The Pile-On 11. Escalation 12. Crossing the line 13: Chaos 14: Detente — though steps 8 through 13 can be repeated as often as the community likes. Dash is an adviser to Medium, which is promising: Medium’s founder, Ev Williams, is aware of the problems the internet can create. He’s already proven that he’s willing to fight to keep the internet open, available, and friendly. if anyone’s equipped to study and counter the more insidious effects of online abuse among internet communities, they’re Williams and Dash. Image: Flickr / Håkan Dahlström
