Sez Us, a social app founded by Democratic strategist Joe Trippi, aims to create a platform that discourages rage-bait content.

Rage-bait content refers to posts designed to provoke controversy, such as intentionally divisive political opinions or fabricated scenarios intended to generate engagement (for example, a satirical TikTok creator received 1.5 million views after claiming to file for divorce because her husband booed Taylor Swift).

The majority of social networking platforms, including Instagram, X, TikTok, and YouTube, inadvertently promote rage-bait content through their creator programs, which reward users based on the number of views they receive. As a result, inflammatory content tends to attract more attention.

To break this cycle, Sez Us allows users to evaluate posts based on approval, influence, insightfulness, relevance, and politeness. By doing so, the platform hopes to encourage users to think before posting inflammatory content, instead promoting civil discourse and constructive conversations.

Transforming the social internet is a challenging task, and Sez Us may ultimately be more of a feature than a standalone product. Nevertheless, its experimental approach to community-driven moderation can serve as a valuable lesson for other platforms seeking to create a more positive online environment.