Twitter’s new moderators: #Birdwatch or birdshot?

Birdwatching is a pleasant, passive sort of ‘niche’ activity. Avian enthusiasts go about their lives, keeping an eye out for a flutter of wings and then linger in appreciation. I do this against my will over a morning coffee on the farm balcony where I am attacked –- Hitchcock-style -– by descendants of the Triassic. 

Twitchers play a different game. Devoted to their pursuit, they traverse continents in packs, camouflage their hides and lay in wait for hours or even years to stalk a list of specific birds. Before it fell out of fashion, those prized finds were often shot, stuffed, and put on display. 

When Twitter announced ‘Birdwatch’, it was not the unveiling of a flattery project. Birdwatching Twitter-style…