Anonymous web accessibility simultaneously produced creative output and unchecked cruelty

Evidence

Web 2.0’s defining feature—its accessibility—was both its greatest strength and most dangerous flaw. In particular, the ease of anonymity and pseudonymity encouraged equal amounts of creativity and cruelty. (When Stewart Brand once held an experimental anonymous online conference, things became so chaotic he forever forbade unsigned posting on WELL.) The unwitting stars of internet humor, such as Mark Allen Hicks (dubbed “Afro Ninja” after a failed audition tape) and Ghyslain Raza (the “Star Wars Kid”), faced relentless public ridicule. — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 179

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the broader thesis of omnivore monoculture forming the era’s blank cultural identity — the same open-access dynamics that flatten taste also enable cruelty.