zlacker

That sounds like a play on the "slow ban":

> Selective downtime, where the troll finds that the website is down (or really slow) quite often. Not all of the time, because that would tip them off. Trolls are impatient by nature, so they eventually find a more reliable forum to troll.

https://ask.metafilter.com/117775/What-was-the-first-website...

>>rhaksw+(OP)
Usually, slow bans aren't done for people who pay you money and add value to your platform.

>>minima+82
Great point! I just wanted to name the technique. I am actually an active speaker and developer against all secretive content moderation actions.

>>minima+82
NYT and others are still adding value to the platform even if users become discouraged from clicking those links and navigating away (choosing instead to just stay on Twitter and read the summary and reactions there). Nudges like this help Twitter have their cake and eat it, too.

>>rhaksw+(OP)
A variation on this is returning an error message of sorts.

>>BHSPit+p9
Once referral pageviews take a hit, I suspect the NYT will be reevaluating their options.