Mathew Ingram
I wrote something for CJR about the recent influx of journalists (including me) joining Mastodon, and some of the culture shock that has emerged as a result https://www.cjr.org/analysis/journalists-want-to-recreate-twitter-on-mastodon-mastodon-is-not-into-it.php
Journalists want to re-create Twitter on Mastodon. Mastodon is not into it.

<p>Ever since Elon Musk completed his $45 billion takeover of Twitter last month, there has been a steady stream of users, including a number of journalists, signing up for Mastodon, an open-source alternative. No one controls Mastodon—or rather, everyone controls their own version of it. There are thousands of servers running the software, and each […]</p>

Columbia Journalism Review
Nov 15, 2022 at 6:37pmWeb
Show threadwilliam.maggosNov 15, 2022

@mathewi @parker

people that others want to read and converse with are the lifeblood of micro blogging. and I want a decentralized media world where the best stuff goes viral without ads, algorithms or gatekeepers. so whatever you need to do (within those confines) to convince people to do your best work here instead of the birdsite is fine by me.

Show threadPhillip de WetNov 15, 2022

@mathewi I set up an instance to host my publication's account(s), for reasons including brand safety and stability.

But I really don't want my journalists on there, because they should be embedded in other communities.

If they choose something like journa.host, well, okay. But hanging out with other journalists just seems weird.

(Promise I won't block it, though.)

Show threadLearningtomakefireNov 15, 2022
@mathewi Another thing to consider is just how much journalist Mastodon posts. It's pretty easy to have your entire feed BREAKING NEWS when all you wanted was a quiet corner of the internet to check in with people who share your interests.
Show threadKMD001Nov 15, 2022

@Learningtomakefire @mathewi but isn't the point that we all control who we interact with?

Your feed isn't determined by an algorithm that says thou shalt see news. If someone posts too much or on something you don't care about, don't follow them. Then you won't see them in your home feed. Still see them in the local or fediverse feed? Mute them, block them or block their server.

They stay in control of what they post, you stay in control of what you see.

Show threadLearningtomakefireNov 15, 2022
@KevinDunseath @mathewi Agree! I think this mostly affects people who's Federated timeline has suddenly changed due to the influx of the Very Online. People on Mastodon have built communities with norms and now are exercising their rights to keep those norms.
Show threadMatunosNov 19, 2022
@Learningtomakefire @KevinDunseath @mathewi expectations of most of those norms being followed across the fediverse seems… optimistic.
Show threadMyles HelfandNov 15, 2022
@mathewi Thanks Mathew. I clicked through to that list of blocking servers and quickly realized that I barely had a clue what any of them are about. You mentioned an academic one in your piece, but generally speaking, do you have a sense for how many of these servers have reasonable/moderate missions, vs. missions that could be seen as opposed to (or at least skeptical of) the idea of a free press?
Show threadMathew IngramNov 15, 2022
@myhelfy I don't really have a sense of that
Show threadCharles SeifeNov 15, 2022

@mathewi

I'm not going to argue that you can't do it... it's a public forum. But to me, doing so in this case, especially given that your (non-public-figure) targets are expressing their desire not to be quoted, lacks the respect that we journalists owe to our sources.

And it's lazy journalism, IMO -- an easy substitute for reporting... and for engaging with a source.

Very disappointing.

Show threadMathew IngramNov 15, 2022
@cgseife thanks for the feedback
Show threadCharles Edward MilesNov 15, 2022
@mathewi for the record, I will not be blocking journa.host on my server, because half the people I follow are there
Show threadhonk honk I'm a truck *brrrrr*Nov 15, 2022

@mathewi Okay, so you wrote this essay, and you... pulled as many inflammatory quotes as you could, but didn't link to them, linked to a couple of comments you wanted to use as references for your reasoning, and then despite recognizing the points made about norms and cultural differences, you ended by putting the burden for solving it on the social media you're complaining isn't accepting you.

Is this your normal journalistic practice, or is your editor just off their game today?

Show threadMathew IngramNov 15, 2022
@notafurry Just to clarify, I didn't link to some of the quotes because I got them from the list of servers that block journa.host (which I linked to). In any case, thanks for the feedback
Show threadhonk honk I'm a truck *brrrrr*Nov 15, 2022

@mathewi

Why does that matter, though? They're not federated with your host; that doesn't mean you can't see them (obviously, if you can quote their words) or that they can't see you. It certainly doesn't mean your audience couldn't follow the links to verify the source and see context.

Believe it or not, I'm quite sympathetic to the journa.host goals and intent, but this essay does rather more harm than good in terms of demonstrating the value the host could represent to the community.

Show threadMathew IngramNov 15, 2022
@notafurry Maybe I wasn't clear -- I got the comments from this list: https://fba.ryona.agency/?domain=journa.host where they were included as reasons for blocking journa.host. There was nothing else to link to
Show threadEric VeyNov 15, 2022

@mathewi

I'm here for the news on a platform that isn't owned by a megalomaniac, so I'm following a ton of journos and lawyers.

Most of the major news outlets and my local ones, too are missing. I'm hoping that they catch on.

Show threadHoward ChengNov 15, 2022

@mathewi Culture shock I think may be a bit of an understatement.

I’m a member of journa.host too and some of the comments I have seen in response to the CW function debate has been shocking.

One told me that “if they get triggered, then that’s just a sign they need help”. Others claimed it was “censorship”.

I am unsure why people are choosing this hill to die on.

Show threadHoward ChengNov 15, 2022

@mathewi … I want to add though that I thought it was a good piece highlighting some of the issues going on with this Twexit for journalists.

I think some people seem shocked that they are being blocked. Although it also shows choice in the consumer of information.

What I also noticed is that our other colleagues don’t seem aware of why people may dislike journalists, which I found a little perplexing that they wouldn’t know / be aware.

Show threadTina Anton (She/Her)Nov 15, 2022
@mathewi that was a really good piece. I'm new to Mastodon and made the migration from Twitter. My primary reason for having a Twitter was to get news direct from journalists around the world as it happened. I had wondered if the news reporting worked the same here or not. This was super informative.
Show threadMathew IngramNov 15, 2022
@Ti_does_art thanks
Show threadSnack Capt  Nov 15, 2022
@mathewi

"Earlier this week, a Mastodon user pointed out that about 45 “instances” are blocking all content from members of journa.host."

I'm not a Mastodon user; I pointed this out from my Pleroma instance.
Show threadMathew IngramNov 15, 2022
@captain Got it -- thanks for letting me know
Show threadKeith 🇺🇸🇪🇺🇮🇪🇺🇦Nov 16, 2022

@mathewi

TruthSocial is a mastodon server that blocks everyone. I think think your last paragraph puts things into perspective. Should have been higher.

«There are approximately 12,000 Mastodon servers at the moment, so the fact that 45 of them block one server of journalists isn’t really the end of the world. But it remains to be seen whether Mastodon overall will welcome an influx of reporters fleeing Twitter and hoping to recreate what they had there.»

Show threadDanNov 16, 2022
@mathewi The list you found is incomplete, is more than 45. The server I'm using the most (as opposed to the one I'm typing from now) is not on that list and is definitely blocking your server. When I attempted to follow On the Media, the admin gave a different reason for the block than you reported. They told me that your server is unmoderated and that they don't take any chances that a new collection of nazis might form and harass their server anew. They are unimpressed by journalists.
Show threadMathew IngramNov 16, 2022
@DanTylkowski Thanks for that info
Show threadVolatileDreamNov 18, 2022
@mathewi You may not have noticed, but the tool you used to discover instances blocking journa.host was developed by https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwi_Farms to perpetuate harm against those who would defederate from their instances.
Kiwi Farms - Wikipedia