IRC Network of Techrights Turns 3 (or 16 if We Count the Freenode Days)
In the summer of 2008 we announced that we had added some IRC presence online. It didn't take longer for people to join. Some people whom I've known (and who respected me) came from USENET and social control media, such as Digg.com. The IRC activity has been persistent since then (every day!) and in May 2021 we left Freenode along with more than 90% of its 'tenants'. Some Freenode NDAs expire in a few weeks, so we'll tell some previously-untold stories. I spoke to Andrew Lee and some of his staff.
Our own IRC network has largely resolved the abuse issue, which peaked last year because of highly aggressive militants. Their sole intention was to demonise, undermine, and harm the site (and whole network). They kept trying to poison the host's mind, too.
Our IRC network has nonetheless grown since then (even if IRC in general isn't growing). It should be noted that the IRC network of SoylentNews has also grown in the past year, unlike Libera.Chat.
In a few months IRC turns 36. Months later Techrights turns 18. █