A review by pamshenanigans
We Had to Remove This Post by Hanna Bervoets

dark emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

We Had to Remove This Post dives into the dangers of disturbing content posted in social media not just towards the audience viewing them but also towards the people moderating them. While I wasn’t exactly wowed by the book, I can sort of relate, as someone who works in the digital marketing space. The story is written in a way that the MC, Kayleigh, is talking to a lawyer or representative for the lawsuit the other ex-employees were working on. 

Kayleigh is desperate for a job and needed the money so she signed up to be a content moderator. Moderators are tasked to view disturbing, violent, and offensive content to decide whether to keep this on the platform or not. 

Dangerous job aside, Kayleigh also had to navigate fragile relationships that may or may not be affected by the nature of their job. 

Another disturbing detail about this book is that it happens in real life, albeit not exactly how it happens in the book. There are content moderators around the world tasked to evaluate certain content. Moderators who have experienced long-term exposure to disturbing images and videos and are dealing with anxiety and paranoid thoughts. 

I’m also pretty sure that similar to this book, there are ridiculous nuances that need to be followed, content that may be dangerous but could generate clicks and views as long as they fit a certain absurd standard. A sample from the book: “Death threats against a pedophile are allowed; death threats against a politician are not; a video of a religious zealot blowing themselves up in a daycare center should be removed, on the grounds that it’s a terrorist propaganda, not because it depicts violence or child abuse.” 
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