First International Conference on the Philosophy of Content Moderation

First International Conference of the Philosophy of Content Moderation

To celebrate its second anniversary, PhilMod – a community of academic researchers and technology professionals interested in digital platform policy – is hosting the first international conference on the philosophy of content moderation. The conference will be held at the Asilomar Conference Grounds on the California central coast (near Monterey) from April 12th to April 15th, 2025. 

Abstracts of 500-1000 words with a short accompanying bio should be sent to [email protected] by December 15th, 2024. All abstracts that touch upon the normative underpinnings of content moderation and platform policy are welcome. Academic philosophers, Trust & Safety practitioners, journalists, and scholars working in another discipline are invited to contribute.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to the following:

• Freedom of expression on digital platforms
• Types of harmful speech (e.g., hate speech, misinformation, deepfakes, conspiracy theories)
• Algorithmic power, democracy, and platform regulation
• The ethics and political philosophy of recommendation algorithms
• Generative AI and content moderation
• Equality in the digital public sphere
• The human costs of content moderation
• Philosophical or ethical tools for Trust & Safety practitioners

Logistics: The conference will begin on the evening of Saturday, April 12, and end in the late afternoon on Monday, April 14. Accommodation will be provided, and all participants will have the option of staying until Tuesday, April 15. Meals will be provided from dinner on April 12th to lunch on April 15th. A fixed-amount travel reimbursement will be offered to participants, who will be responsible for organizing their travel to the conference grounds from nearby international airports (San Jose and San Francisco). Please note that a shuttle runs from San Francisco airport and San Jose airport to Monterey.

Organizers: Etienne Brown (SJSU), Hanna Gunn (UC Merced), and Jeffrey Howard (UCL).