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Can social media bring people together rather than divide and deceive us?

In the world of corporate social media platforms such as X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook, the notion of a nontoxic public forum seems quaint. These are places where political and personal brawling goes on 24/7 and disinformation flows as freely as cat videos. The platforms rely on high conflict to attract eyeballs and make money.

Vermonters have another option. Front Porch Forum (FPF), co-founded in 2006 by Michael Wood-Lewis and his wife Valerie, is a decidedly friendly online place where neighbors go to interact civilly with one another, and do what neighbors do: seek advice, buy and sell things, and discuss local issues without resorting to personal attacks. The site is heavily moderated by real people who read each posting and filter out items that offend, incite or misinform. It operates in every town and has nearly 235,000 members, including nearly half of Vermont’s adults.

The discord common on conventional social media is “not an accident,” said Wood-Lewis. “Another way of saying people are attacking each other and acting cruel is Ooh, member engagement is up. We can sell more ads. We can collect more data to sell to huge data brokers who do God knows what with people’s private information. That’s the business model of Twitter and Facebook and all these others.”

The idea of an online forum that builds community instead of dividing it is attracting national attention. The Washington Post recently reported, “At a time when Americans are increasingly disenchanted with social media, researchers are studying Front Porch Forum to try to understand what makes for a kinder, gentler online community — and what Big Tech could learn from it.”

The best indication of FPF’s influence is the way that it builds civic engagement. According to a new study by the nonprofit New_ Public, 61% of FPF users reported that they had attended a local event or public meeting as a result of something they read on the forum, over half reported that they had discussed issues with a neighbor and one fifth of users said they had volunteered locally in response to a posting on FPF.

FPF, which is headquartered in Burlington, employs 30 people, including many content moderators. Wood-Lewis said that a “critical part of our model is that each member-submitted posting is reviewed by our professional staff before publication (which) is absolutely not how any other social media works.”

FPF enforces a strict set of rules in its online public square, including no personal attacks. “We’re not going to let people basically weaponize Front Porch Forum to do harm to our democracy, to our public health, things like that,” he said.

Elon Musk, who owns X, and Facebook owner Mark Zuckerberg insist that the unfettered exchange of views on their platforms is just free speech. Wood-Lewis begs to differ.

“I do not think the folks you mentioned have any real interest in protecting free speech. They have an interest in amassing power and money.”

Front Porch Forum “has felt better and better as the divisiveness in our national scene has gotten worse, and as the isolation brought on by the pandemic and social media and smartphones and so many different things in modern life has gotten worse,” said Wood-Lewis.

Despite requests to expand to other states, Wood-Lewis insisted that FPF will stay local. The online forum proved its value by  connecting people impacted by flooding in Vermont in 2011, 2023 and 2024 with help and resources.

“As long as Vermont communities are struggling in significant ways, Front Porch Forum wants to be there as an ally and a partner.”

The Colorado Avalanche face the Boston Bruins at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado, on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024 (10/16/24).

How to watch: Fans can watch the match via a free trial to DirecTVStream or via a subscription to SlingTV.

Here’s what you need to know:

What: NHL regular season

Who: Colorado Avalanche vs. Boston Bruins

When: Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024

Time: 9:30 p.m. ET

Where: Ball Arena

TV: TNT

Channel finder: Verizon Fios, AT&T U-verse, Comcast Xfinity, Spectrum/Charter, Optimum/Altice,Cox, DIRECTV, Dish, Hulu, fuboTV, Sling.

Live stream: DirecTVStream

Here’s a recent AP NHL story

DENVER (AP) — The banged-up Colorado Avalanche will be without another forward in Jonathan Drouin due to an upper-body injury.

Drouin’s expected to miss at least two games before his injury is reassessed. The 29-year-old left winger didn’t have a shot on goal in more than 21 minutes of ice time during a season-opening 8-4 loss at Vegas on Wednesday.

His absence is a big offensive blow for a team that’s already missing forwards Gabriel Landeskog (knee) and Artturi Lehkonen (shoulder). Another forward, Valeri Nichushkin, is serving a suspension that’s in effect until at least mid-November.

“Obviously, every guy that’s missing makes the job more difficult,” coach Jared Bednar said after practice Friday as his team prepares for its home opener against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday. “But it forces our team to dig in on the details and the commitment side of the game right away.

“We said it going in — we have to expect that everyone in our lineup has to be on top of their game, not just be in a role, but driving that role in order to have success. That’s a little bit of pressure right out of the gate.”

The Avalanche added another goaltender Friday by claiming Kaapo Kahkonen off waivers from the Winnipeg Jets. This comes on the heels of a rough outing from Alexandar Georgiev, who allowed five goals on 16 shots against the Golden Knights, and Justus Annunen, who surrendered two goals on four shots.

The 28-year-old Kahkonen spent last season with the San Jose Sharks and New Jersey Devils, compiling a 7-24-3 mark. He will join the Avalanche organization once he clears immigration.

Kahkonen is 49-67-15 with a 3.33 goals-against average since entering the NHL in 2019-20.

“We’ve seen better from our goalies than we’ve seen here recently, and if they can elevate their game, great,” Bednar said. “And if Kahkonen and can come in and play well, great. It’s about winning hockey games. If we can get incrementally better in any position, we’ll try and do it, especially when there’s low risk involved.”

Mikko Rantanen, fresh off a hat trick to start the season, was pleased to see the team pick up Kahkonen, another player from Finland.

“I know him pretty well. He’s my age, from Finland — a pretty small country, so I basically know everybody,” Rantanen cracked. “I don’t know everybody, but (as) hockey players you know a little bit about everybody. We skated together in the summers, and we won the World Juniors together. It’s good to have him. He’s a good goalie.”

Rantanen said after practice there have been no developments on the contract-extension front. He’s in the final year of his deal.

“Like I said before, it’s done when it’s done,” Rantanen said. “We’ll see what happens with that. I just try to focus on the ice.”

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting us with a subscription. Cayden Steele may be reached at CSteele@njadvancemedia.com.