Shutting Down 8chan

<p>At least three mass shootings this year — including one in El Paso — have been announced in advance on the online message board 8chan, often accompanied by racist writings. We look at the battle over shutting down the site. Guests: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/kevin-roose" target="_blank">Kevin Roose</a>, who writes about technology for The New York Times, spoke with Fredrick Brennan, the founder of 8chan. For more information on today’s episode, visit <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/thedaily" target="_blank">nytimes.com/thedaily</a>. </p><p>Background reading:</p><ul><li>Fredrick Brennan started 8chan as a free speech utopia. But<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/04/technology/8chan-shooting-manifesto.html?smid=pc-thedaily" target="_blank"> the site became known as something else</a>: a megaphone for mass shooters, and a recruiting platform for violent white nationalists.</li><li>Several tech providers pulled support for 8chan, temporarily taking the site offline.<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/technology/8chan-cloudflare-el-paso.html?smid=pc-thedaily" target="_blank"> The decision to do so was not a straightforward one</a> for the security company Cloudflare.</li></ul>