Alleged censorship on ScubaBoard

[danvolker]

So here is a question for you NetDoc or any of the moderators that have followed this thread which is at least three. Does a post or thread have to be reported before it gets moderated?

Take this thread for example. It started out as a thread about censorship or moderation but like many threads on SB, it has drifted off into a world of it's on with many posts now having very little to do with the original subject. Now I'm fine with that as it seems most folks are because I assume this thread has not been reported for being off topic or else it would have been "moderated" and cleaned up. But we know that at a minimum the COB and three moderators have been either active or following the thread but no one has done anything to post a warning about staying on topic or shut down the thread to get it cleaned up.

I think for the most part the moderators do a good job here on SB. My guess would be it can be a thankless job at times if not most of the time. And I realize that with any group of people, there are different personalities involved and some moderators do a better job than other. I have been in threads like this one, that stray off topic and with moderators involved in that thread, but the thread goes on. No harm no foul and folks are having a good time. Then I have seen cases where a thread is moving along, can stray from the topic, and a moderator will post a warning about getting back to the topic. And finally, I have seen threads, again where it goes astray but with nothing all that bad going on, and a moderator will come in, close the thread so they can clean it up, and then reopen the thread without any warning given. And if you have been on SB long enough, you know exactly which moderators do what.

I just would like to see more consistency with the actions taken when moderating threads. But I suspect with the many different personalities involved, that would be difficult to accomplish.

There are conversations where tangents are natural, and where you enjoy and expect them...and there are conversations of a very focussed nature, where a ridiculous tangent SHOULD BE removed.....This is what you need a good Moderator for--one that can understand the real issues in a thread, and the sub text, and then "do the right thing".... Of course, there are good moderators, and there are BAD Moderators. If they always had to post their names when they did a moderation action, then we could all keep score....and we could "GRADE" them on whether they were good or bad at their job!!!!! Right now, it is not even PASS/FAIL....it is all PASS.

 

[letterboy]

I believe, from my experiences, that unless someone reports it it goes on unabated.

Which I believe is OK, because if there was an issue the Op, or anyone in the thread could say hey, those jackarses are ruining my split fin discussion.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Cough . . .

 

[gypsyjim]

Sometimes these discussions are just plain

I have noticed the attitude:

Moderate someone else, and that is OK, but moderate me, and THAT is CENSORSHIP!


an action only become persecution when it is directed at you?

 

[triplecove]

I believe, from my experiences, that unless someone reports it it goes on unabated.

Which I believe is OK, because if there was an issue the Op, or anyone in the thread could say hey, those jackarses are ruining my split fin discussion.

Did he just say "Split fins".........I'm hitting the eject button!

 

[adurso]

Spare air rules!

 

[The Chairman]

Does a post or thread have to be reported before it gets moderated?

We try to be more reactive than proactive when it comes to moderation. That allows the community to let us know what they think is acceptable or not and allows for regional and cultural differences. However, there are some areas where we are more proactive to protect the newbie from being MOFed like in the green zones.

When a post is reported it goes into the "Unclaimed" sub forum in the Back room. A moderator or a number of moderates will look at the reported post and see if they even want to deal with it. There are a number of people I recuse myself from dealing with because I don't like them or they think I don't like them. Sometimes the resolution is obvious and a mod claims it, resolves it and moves it to our "closed" sub forum. A few reports are less clear and so they are moved to our "in process" sub forum where mods can discuss it. The rub comes when a post or thread gets reported for being mean spirited or a harassment. There's a fine line between calling someone a name (a personal attack) and pointing out their character flaws. Nobody likes to be told that they are uncivil. Look at poor Chrpai. He felt attacked when I simply and civilly pointed out the obvious. We tend to side with the person who feels attacked. Most of these are resolved without any additional controversy, but there are a few that seem to set the world on fire. We've tried to keep the ToS simple but relevant and we truly try to live up to our Guiding Principle:

As the staff of ScubaBoard, our goal is to provide our users with a safe and friendly atmosphere that will bring together new friends, attract scuba diving professionals and diving legends in a way that creates "The Optimal Internet Diving Community".

 

[chrpai]

Look at poor Chrpai.

Look at fat NetDoc. He just can't stop trolling.

When your COB, it's just stating an opinion. When you are just a user, it's attacking and banishment will follow.

 

[ChickenFried]

NetDoc and Chrpai, you should take your squabble to messages. Neither of you are promoting a friendly atmosphere (in this thread) at this point, IMO.

 

[Wookie]

NetDoc and Chrpai, you should take your squabble to messages. Neither of you are promoting a friendly atmosphere (in this thread) at this point, IMO.

A million likes to you, sir. Epic win.