The digital covenant: non-centralized platform governance on the mastodon social network

The majority of scholarship on platform governance focuses for-profit, corporate social media with highly centralized network structures. Instead, we show how non-centralized functions in the Mastodon network. Through an analysis survey data, Github and Discourse developer discussions, Codes Conduct, participant observations, argue Mastodon’s is exemplar covenant, a key concept from federalist political theory. We contrast covenantal federalism contractual form used by media. also use theory to explain users, administrators, developers justify revoking or denying membership federation. In doing so, this study sheds new light innovations that go beyond corporate/alt-right dichotomy.