Shane Burnett

Should entertainment platforms add stronger friction before users share outrage-driven content?

I run a small-town news site, and my most-shared posts are exactly what your filter would call outrage: a missing teenager, a boil-water notice, a factory closing that puts 200 neighbors out of work. Those posts are emotional because the events are emotional, and a pop-up asking 'are you sure?' injects doubt into urgent community information. Meanwhile the actual rage-bait farms, with their bot networks and engagement pods, will test their way around any prompt within a week. We have watched this movie with spam filters: the professionals adapt, and the collateral damage lands on the local publisher with no compliance department. With [news deserts](https://localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu/research/state-of-local-news/) spreading, community journalism does not need another algorithmic speed bump.

that specific silence in a theater during a great scene. my couch will never do that

Entertainment · Oct 6, 2026 · Are movie theaters dead, or is the big screen irreplaceable?