Who scrapes our internet mess off the walls? In Australia, a recent survey suggests it is often women.

The Australian Community Managers (ACM) career survey found 68 per cent of its 215 respondents were women, suggesting it is one of the few technology jobs men do not dominate.

The labour of answering questions for brands on social media, removing abusive posts and keeping conversations on-topic is one of the roles on which the digital economy relies.

While the industry's broader gender breakdown is difficult to determine (Twitter, Reddit and Facebook declined to comment), some in the industry say the discrepancy is clear.

Kelsey Gamble, who works as a community manager for a video game publisher, said the gender disparity was apparent in the two "hugely male dominated industries" she has worked in — games and start-ups.

"It was always funny to see the stark difference between my team and every other team in the companies I worked for — [my team was] not just women dominated but actually occasionally diverse!" she wrote in an email.

Women employed as online community managers and content moderators said the job is often misunderstood and devalued — their labour reduced to being a company's "mother hen" — leaving them to face the worst of the internet without support.

Working at the internet's coalface

Online content moderation can be highly traumatic. The job can involve looking at distressing images — potentially depicting child pornography and extreme violence — to assess whether they break social media rules.

This kind of work is often outsourced to people in the Philippines or India.

But in Australia too, dealing with online communities can be stressful work — 15 per cent of ACM respondents said they had been harassed or bullied.

"I've been stalked, harassed, had my face photoshopped onto porn — it is definitely not all sunshine and roses," Ms Gamble said.

Kelsey Gamble says she has been stalked, harassed and had her face photoshopped onto porn. ( Supplied: Kelsey Gamble )

Burnout is also a concern for Australian workers, according to Alison Michalk, who runs community management company, Quiip.

Ms Michalk said young workers were expected to check in at all hours (most survey respondents were in the 22 to 29 and 30 to 39 age brackets), and there can be little understanding of the work's emotional impact.

Some of Ms Michalk's clients have been mental health providers, meaning employees were moderating conversations with people who may be going through trauma, which could take a toll.

"'Oh, you're on Facebook, whatever, how hard can it be?' But it can be really intense," Ms Michalk said, of the typical attitude toward social media moderation work.

"Inevitably, you get called names, you get criticised, you get threatened."

Mind the pay gap

'Caring' industries such as childcare and aged care have traditionally been seen as women's work, accompanied by low pay and subpar conditions.

And in the online creative industries, similar divisions are being replicated, according to some experts.

Writing about the preponderance of women in social media positions in the press in 2015, editor Alana Hope Levinson was told the field is often referred to as the "pink ghetto".

A recent Cornell University study found that traits it associated with women, such as being "sociable, emotive, and flexible", were common in wording of social media-related job advertisements.

Other reports have found that ads for male-dominated occupations often use words more associated with stereotypically male qualities like "ambitious" and "assertive".

For content moderators, the job can take a toll. ( Unsplash:NeONBRAND )

The Cornell study's co-author, Assistant Professor Brooke Erin Duffy, suggested social media work has been "feminised", potentially leaving it less visible, less rewarded and less stable than other technology industry jobs.

"You have this field which is dominated by women but does not get the same prestige and pay as other forms of work," she said.

These are all problems that ACM's founder Venessa Paech has seen in Australia.

While the industry needs to get better at defending its business value, she said the idea that social media work is "for the intern" was still pervasive.

The 'pink ghetto'

How do women end up in these roles?

Ms Gamble suggested the industry's relative newness means people may not have preconceptions of who a "community manager" can be, unlike a designer or developer, who is traditionally seen as a male.

Nevertheless, the stereotype that women are more verbally communicative, diplomatic and sympathetic has also played a role.

"I don't want to give a gendered answer, but I think community management does require a lot of empathy and a lot of soft skills," Ms Michalk said.

Alison Michalk's own company has employed mostly women. ( Supplied: Alison Michalk )

Sociologist at University of Melbourne, Dr Leah Ruppanner, suggested the preponderance of women in these roles might reflect a lingering adherence to Victorian-era ideals.

While men went out into the competitive, corrupt world, women took on homemaking and caring roles — they were society's moral centre.

In online communities, women are employed at the "moral" coalface, facing down trolls and hardcore pornography.

Ms Paech said she's felt this "parental" dynamic at work, where employers have referred to community managers as "our mother hen" or "our den mother".

Still, female domination can have benefits. Ms Gamble said she may have faced less of a "glass ceiling" when advancing her career than other women working in technology.

"Often the role of community manager is utilised by businesses as the 'human meat shield' of the company," Ms Gamble said.

"While I'm extremely lucky to be well and truly past those days myself, I still do see it."