Unemployed and estranged from his wife and son, Frank accepts a job offer from a contractor to moderate content for one of the world’s largest social media companies. This work takes a toll on Frank until he realizes he might have the power to save someone and himself in the process.

A Commission from EST/Alfred P. Sloan Science & Technology Project

Director Jared Mezzochi

Ken Urban: “My new play about the world of internet content moderators is a work of fiction. But I spent months interviewing researchers and speaking to content moderators, and their words had a big impact as I wrote this play. I often challenge myself to write about people and places far removed from my own experience, and research
helps me get inside the minds of my characters and to do justice to their stories.”

Guest Scientist – Crystal Lee, MIT SERC (Social and Ethical Responsibilities in Computing) and Comparative Media Studies: “My work investigates what I call the “the life-cycle of data representations,” or the process by which datasets are curated, cleaned, visualized, circulated, and manipulated.”

Science on Stage is organized through the Catalyst Collaborative at MIT, produced in collaboration with the Central Square Theater.

Themes: AI, social media, social justice, issues related to privacy