Twitch: Sword Version and Shield Version
There is no shortage of harassment and cyberbullying on the internet. During the summer, Twitch started to see a sharp uptick in hate raids focused on women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ streamers. It is an ongoing issue today, but hopefully, we will see increased protection with the new Shield Mode.
This new feature is rolling out to Twitch users today. Shield Mode is a tool that can be used by streamers and their mods, which can activate customizable chat settings with the click of a button. The two big elements are the Bulk Ban and No First Time Chatters.
Bulk Ban is an action that a streamer can take once Shield Mode is active. The streamer or mod can select a term in the chat and ban all users who have used it recently. These banned terms reset every time Shield Mode is activated, so that regular channel viewers do not get caught up in the mass ban.
Righteous victims of Bulk Ban can be individually unbanned, but if you want to report users, they also have to be reported individually. Twitch is working on a way to mass report, as well.
The No First Time Chatters feature is exactly what it sounds like. Generally, the people who participate in online abuse rely on anonymity to be relieved of consequence, but no longer. Obviously, streamers would like to expand their community and allow new viewers to discover them. However, this features is helpful when waves of new viewers come in through raids.
Shield Mode can be has more options and preferences than just these two features. They can be can be pre-programmed and activated with a single click of a button.
Do you see yourself using Shield Mode? Let us know in the comments below.