FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - Question 2: Palatable Moderation
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Old Nov 7, 2007, 11:54 pm
  #57  
nsx
Moderator: Southwest Airlines, Capital One
 
Join Date: Sep 1999
Location: California
Programs: WN Companion Pass, A-list preferred, Hyatt Globalist; United Club Lietime (sic) Member
Posts: 21,572
Here are some concrete suggestions for making the Terms of Service more specific. These should give everyone an idea of what I mean by specificity that will help posters and moderators have a common understanding of what is allowed and what is not allowed. These suggestions should also dispel any worries that making the Terms of Service more specific will be anything other than a benefit to posters.

1. "Fighting words" or "flame bait", meaning posts guaranteed to draw plenty of hostile return fire, are not allowed. Content-free insults of forum participants or their favorite airline ("only losers fly Sky High Airlines") are a popular version of this type of value-subtracting post. Unless the insult is so uproariously funny that even the targets of the jibe will laugh, don't post it. The same goes for insulting backhanded compliments like "Thanks for not flaming back even though you wish you could have". The easiest way to avoid this error is to base your posts on interesting and useful factual content. Because you know what they say about opinions... Everyone has one.

Another way to avoid this error is to find something nice to say once for every three negative posts. That, plus respectful wording of negative posts, will show good faith to everyone with eyes to see.

2. If you make a habit of throwing stones, don't ask the moderators to protect your glass house.

3. Avoid posting political opinions outside the OMNI forum. There's no benefit to bringing politics into a program-specific forum, even if everyone agrees, which they probably don't. These posts annoy a significant minority of readers and subtract value from FT even if they don't escalate into open argument.

4. Name calling is not allowed, even if true. For example, calling a troll a troll is a personal attack. Furthermore it only feeds his anger and creates more forum pollution and more work for the moderators. Don't feed the troll! Please use Report Bad Post instead. The RBPs go only to moderators, and they don't pollute the forum.

5. If an annoying post remains in place, let the readers judge who is causing trouble and who's being nice. Readers are really good at that. Retailiating in kind against negative comments pollutes the forum further. It only takes one side to stop a food fight, and the cheerleaders always have to be that side. Not responding to annoying posts is the single most effective method that members can use to reduce forum pollution.

6. Being willing to give ground even when you know you're right is one way to show that you have what it takes to be a good neighbor on FT. Readers will notice, and they will respect you more for it. Others will be more likely to forgive your transgressions if you routinely forgive theirs.
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