Could we do an experiment where for a 2 week period only spam or illegal content would be removed, but otherwise allow free speech on the forums?
Yeah that would never happen in today’s world 😂Could we do an experiment where for a 2 week period only spam or illegal content would be removed, but otherwise allow free speech on the forums?
I would hope this is how the forums are already moderated.Could we do an experiment where for a 2 week period only spam or illegal content would be removed, but otherwise allow free speech on the forums?
Absolutely.I would hope this is how the forums are already moderated.
That is not going to happen. The rules are enforced to encourage polite discussion among forum members.Could we do an experiment where for a 2 week period only spam or illegal content would be removed, but otherwise allow free speech on the forums?
And it's appreciated. This is a forum run by others that you choose to join and participate in. There's plenty of places to get the "free speech" referred to.That is not going to happen. The rules are enforced to encourage polite discussion among forum members.
If you ever read the pablum spewing from the rabble of the great unwashed you would instantly know why this is a very bad idea. Internet forums without moderation invariably devolve into shouting contests governed by incivility and those people looking to incite and reasoned and thoughtful viewpoints are invariably drowned out in the furor.Could we do an experiment where for a 2 week period only spam or illegal content would be removed, but otherwise allow free speech on the forums?
I am curios - what’s your hypothesis? What observation or data is your hypothesis based on? How will it be tested with that particular "experiment"? What’s your "control"?Could we do an experiment where for a 2 week period only spam or illegal content would be removed, but otherwise allow free speech on the forums?
Name your price...That is not going to happen. The rules are enforced to encourage polite discussion among forum members.
As a volunteer moderator elsewhere (and unconnected in any way with computers), your points are good.Speaking as someone who's been a paid moderator, volunteer moderator, and site administrator for message boards and user communities both far smaller than MacRumors, and a couple that dwarf MacRumors: If I had a dollar for every time someone made request to relax restrictions or moderation under the flag of "free speech" (particularly in the last couple years) I'd be a wealthy man.
I'm beyond the point of not having cynicism toward such requests. All the world is a big ball of agendas, just waiting to shouted, preferably louder than someone else's agendas.
Rules of engagement exist for a reason: From Robert's Rules of Order governing a board meeting, down to a volunteer moderator at a site like MacRumors toiling to keep a thread on track. Attempting to relax those rules is not in service of "free speech," it is in service of chaos, and no one is going to convince me otherwise.
(note: my opinions are my own and do not reflect policy for any community I have in the past or may currently serve as moderator for. I have no connection to MacRumors as anything other than an appreciative user.)
Rules and moderation have failed spectacularly at that too. An entire forum category had to be removed because the rules and moderation weren't working to support civil discussion.As @Weaselboy pointed out, the only point of the rules and moderation on this site is to support civil discussion.
Not really. That particular forum was removed because the posters who frequented it refused to abide by the rules and behave with civility. The other topic forums are not nearly as chaotic.Rules and moderation have failed spectacularly at that too. An entire forum category had to be removed because the rules and moderation weren't working to support civil discussion.
What you've written isn't a counter argument.Not really. That particular forum was removed because the posters who frequented it refused to abide by the rules and behave with civility. The other topic forums are not nearly as chaotic.
Just the facts, not an argument. Glad we agree.What you've written isn't a counter argument.
That's of course not the whole picture. There is only a certain amount rules and moderation can do when a percentage of the users who partipated in that section simply weren't able or willing to follow the rules. At the end of the day, decisions need to be made about how much time staff can spend on any one forum section.Rules and moderation have failed spectacularly at that too. An entire forum category had to be removed because the rules and moderation weren't working to support civil discussion.
Absolutely.And it's appreciated. This is a forum run by others that you choose to join and participate in. There's plenty of places to get the "free speech" referred to.
Yeah, put the political forum back, seriously.Could we do an experiment where for a 2 week period only spam or illegal content would be removed, but otherwise allow free speech on the forums?