Originally published by Hunter Walk on LinkedIn: This Former Hillary Staffer Is Building Aloe, A Self-Care App. Meet Amber Discko.
I know Amber via her kind and helpful Twitter presence (I *think* @Ianointroduced us). So when she launched a recent Kickstarter for Aloe, a self-care app, it felt right to jump in and support her. As the project gained momentum I was surprised by two types of reactions: first, the large number of teens who really were into the idea, and second, the harassers who belittled the concept. As a friend, and now Aloe backer, I wanted to learn a bit more about Amber and Aloe, so Five Questions.
Hunter Walk: Besides the holder of an awesome name, who is Amber Discko?
Amber Discko: Professionally I’m a freelance digital strategist who most recently worked on the Hillary for America campaign, a creative strategist at Tumblr, and fun fact I was the community manager for Denny’s Diner back when it was innovative for a brand to be good on Twitter. Personally? I’m still figuring that one out. I live in Brooklyn, NY with my cat @ScotusCatand partner. I’m a huge fan of using social media to create social change and filling my followers feeds with wholesome memes and positivity.
HW: You spent a few years working at Tumblr. What was your gig there and what did being on the inside teach you about how people were using Tumblr?
AD: I was on the creative strategy team there which involved helping brands understand Tumblr and all the wonderful communities that make it so special. I’d also sometimes go to different agencies to talk about using the Tumblr platform and working with its creators. Talking about these communities constantly and seeing how they interacted and grew was really cool to watch. It definitely made me feel like I was witnessing something unique.
HW: Should platforms like Twitter or Facebook take stronger stances on harassment and hate speech or is it too slippery a slope to centralize this type of judgment instead of giving users the tools to moderate their own experiences?
AD: Yes I do believe social networks have a responsibility to protect its users from harassment and hate speech. As someone who was a target of online harassment for many years, the self moderating tools are nice to see. It just sucks that they allow people to cause so much pain to others. It would be nice to see more action and holding people accountable versus just making the community do the work. The people at the top of these platforms shaped their communities and allowed hate and harassment to thrive, it’s their responsibility to make it better if they truly care about their users.