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Neighborhood watch: how amateur moderators police Google Maps

Neighborhood watch: how amateur moderators police Google Maps

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After last week's Atlantic feature on the creation of Google Maps, The New York Times has published a follow-up piece profiling one of the moderators who keeps the service running.

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Google Map of New York City
Google Map of New York City

After last week's intriguing feature in The Atlantic on the processes behind the creation of Google's wildly popular, open-access maps, The New York Times has published a follow-up piece profiling one of the moderators who keeps the service running. A chef by day, Brooklyn resident Matthew Hyland voluntarily oversees additions and changes to Google Maps in his spare time, having been hand-picked by the company for his high-quality contributions. In his role as moderator, he is in charge of policing the much-contested boundaries between New York neighborhoods, lines which are constantly being shifted by aspirational residents or sneaky real estate agents attempting to boost the prestige of their properties. Head over to The New York Times to find out how Hyland manages these conflicts, and why it's an increasingly difficult task.