Susan Benesch founded and directs the Dangerous Speech Project, an independent research team that focuses on rhetoric that can inspire violence – and on ways to prevent this without infringing on freedom of expression. To that end, she studies methods to diminish harmful speech online, or the harm itself. 

She also both critiques and advises technology companies, to improve content moderation and user behavior. Trained as an international human rights lawyer at Yale, Susan has worked as a refugee lawyer and advocate, publishes widely, and has taught and lectured at universities in many countries. She is an adjunct professor at American University, and a Faculty Associate of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University.