Ignore or delete? This is the question posed to the thousands of online image moderatos that work in the Philippines, censoring the images we see online. Every day, media moderators must delete 25,000 images from the internet based on guidelines about pornography, violence, hate speech.
There is a constant flow of images passing these people every day, images containing everything from satirical artwork to bombs and beheadings. The decisions made during the 8 seconds needed to choose whether to censor the image from the online world can have drastic effects for both the consumer and the moderator. When images of atrocities are deleted, we can continue to ignore conflict. For those who do see these atrocities, constant bombardment of imagery that shows self-harm, torture, abuse can make these moderators numb to the horrors of the world, or in more extreme cases, can cause the moderators to commit suicide.
This series shows a selection of the images that have been deleted from the internet. Physically presented in book format with acetate inserts that allow the viewer a choice to see or not see the deleted image.
It’s a simple choice; ignore or delete?