Report: PTSD Found in 144 of 144 Facebook Moderators

Almost 190 Facebook content moderators in Kenya have sued Facebook parent Meta and the outsourcing firm who hired them, alleging intentional infliction of mental harm, among other woes. Court filings viewed by the Guardian reveal the depths of the alleged impact: The paper cites medical reports filed with the employment and labor relations court that say 144 of the moderators were examined by the doctor who heads up mental health services at Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi, and 100% of them were found to have PTSD. Extremely severe PTSD symptoms were noted in 81% of cases. Most moderators have been off the job at least a year. More:

• The doctor's findings: Dr. Ian Kanyanya determined the primary driver of the mental issues suffered by the moderators was their work, through which they "encountered extremely graphic content on a daily basis, which included videos of gruesome murders, self-harm, suicides, attempted suicides, sexual violence, explicit sexual content, child physical and sexual abuse, [and] horrific violent actions, just to name a few."
• One extreme example: Four moderators were found to be experiencing trypophobia, an aversion to or fear of clusters of small holes that can cause anxiety. It was tied to their viewing of holes on decomposing bodies.
• Standout quote: Martha Dark, the head of the UK nonprofit Foxglove, which has backed the court case, tells the Guardian, "The evidence is indisputable: Moderating Facebook is dangerous work that inflicts lifelong PTSD on almost everyone who moderates it. ... In any other industry, if we discovered 100% of safety workers were being diagnosed with an illness caused by their work, the people responsible would be forced to resign and face the legal consequences for mass violations of people's rights."

• Meta's stance: While Meta didn't comment on the most recent claims, it has said its contracts with third-party moderators included specifics about expectations regarding things like counseling and on-site support. It also says it tried to dent the impact with technology—e.g., by muting sound and presenting images in monochrome.
• A second Kenya suit: The AP in September reported that Facebook is facing two suits in Kenya. The second case was brought by 185 moderators over layoffs, with Reuters reporting they claim they were fired from the contractor that hired them after trying to unionize, then put on a no-hire list when they applied for jobs with another contractor that had been hired by Facebook to handle moderation.

(More Facebook stories.)