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The real purpose of forum moderators revealed
As your forum becomes popular, you will inevitably need help administering it. Many forum owners understand the need for forum moderators but few understand what their real purpose is. This article will reveal what forum moderators should be used for – follow this advice and you will have an immediate head-start over your competitors.
Forum moderators are not police officers
The biggest mistake forum owners make when taking on forum moderators is expecting them to police the community. Many see the main role of moderators as enforcers of the site rules, as people who delete posts they don’t like and lock topics the moment they run off-course. If these are the priorities of your moderators, you are doing it all wrong.
As I have said before, you must never repress your community. You must ensure that you moderate your forum effectively – this means adopting a laissez-faire approach and allowing your members a large amount of freedom. If you or your moderators crack down on members the second they step out of line, you will be sending a negative signal to your community that free speech is not tolerated on your site. You will make people nervous and discourage them from getting involved – hardly the ingredients for a successful community!
Forum moderators should promote interaction
The primary role of a forum moderator should be to promote interaction. A forum moderator should be posting new threads and adding new content to the site. They should be helping out members with their queries and they should be keeping threads alive by asking questions.
I am not saying that forum moderators shouldn’t be allowed to delete or lock threads that are inappropriate – of course this should be one of their roles. What I am saying is this should never be their primary role.
When you take on forum moderators you need to make it clear exactly what you expect from them. Most moderators see themselves as forum police officers and will only edit/delete/lock content without creating any themselves. This is a mistake – make sure your moderators know that their primary role is to encourage interaction, to encourage member involvement, and to encourage a sense of community within your forum.
Your moderators
Do you have moderators on your forum? Have you made their role clear to them? Have you advised them that their primary role should be to create content and encourage member interaction? Share your thoughts and opinions by leaving a comment below.
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76 Responses to “The real purpose of forum moderators revealed”
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December 20th, 2007 at 2:43 am
There’s only myself and one other person that moderates the forum. I don’t think we’ve deleted one post as to now.
You’re right, though. I’ve been a member of several boards where topics are deleted or locked just because someone disagreed with the moderator, or because the moderator didn’t like that person’s post.
I left those boards.. so people will do the same with yours if you act the same as the above mentioned moderators!
December 20th, 2007 at 1:23 pm
Yes, Smiley has got it right. The moderator has got to understand that the role is to moderate not to be a censor!
December 20th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
I have a moderately sized niche forum (~ 3,000 members) and I disagree to a certain extent. I think there are certain topics that cause more harm than good to a community. These topics are religion and politics and I have banned them outright. Beyond that everything goes. The primary role my mod team fulfills is killing spam as it pops up.
December 21st, 2007 at 3:33 am
Actually it is more interesting when it is a little controversial and a healthy debate (as opposed to acrimonious argument) should be encouraged by a moderator rather than nipped in the bud.
December 21st, 2007 at 11:22 am
What you say as real purpose of forum moderators is absolutely true…They should really understand their role and act accordingly
December 26th, 2007 at 3:34 am
Well, I’m a moderator of a forum with about 400 active members. There are technically no rules there – the admins expect everyone to use common sense. While most people abide by that, there will be a poster every once in a while that comes around and abuses it to post whatever they feel like. The most recent incidents involved the most uncreative racial slurring I have seen in my life. His reasoning was exactly as I expected : “There are no rules, so I can post whatever I want.”
In cases like that, I see post deletion / thread closure without a word to be completely appropriate.
December 29th, 2007 at 12:04 am
[...] The real purpose of forum moderators revealed [...]
December 30th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
I agree with banning comments that are on religion, politics, and racial-ethnic slurs.
Otherwise, freedom of speech should prevail
James
December 31st, 2007 at 7:20 am
It is no doubt moderators actually play a very important role. Whether a forum will be successful or not depends on the moderators part to promote the forum and encourage positive interactions among members. Most important I believe, is to help out with members seeking help at the forum.
January 2nd, 2008 at 7:49 pm
Moderators are the most needed person in any forum. I got some real help from them and before that I was thinking what they can do but now I know how much they can do for the users of a forum.
January 2nd, 2008 at 8:43 pm
Smiley – I couldn’t agree more. I also like the fact you only have one moderator in addition to yourself – some forums have too many staff members and as a result become far too overbearing and more like a community of police officers than a community of regular people!
Ramana – You’re right; the definition is in the word ‘moderator’ not ‘oppressor’ or ‘police officer’!
Jewelry Luvr – Banning controversial subjects can be a good idea as it can prevent arguments, however a little controversy can be healthy for a community as it encourages debate and interaction. I am glad to hear that you haven’t fallen into the trap of making deleting and locking topics the primary role of your moderators.
Reena – You’re right; a little disagreement from time to time is a sign of a healthy, vibrant community. Just as long as it doesn’t degrade into downright abuse!
Sudarshan – I am glad you agree. Do you run a forum website?
Manze – I don’t think I completely agree with you on this one. Whilst your site doesn’t have any rules, you will have people that cause you problems and use the same excuse you have just mentioned. Draw up some site rules, and you will see less abuse and have more legitimacy when you need to delete or lock threads.
Live Music Los Angeles – I don’t think that controversial subjects should necessarily be banned as these help create and encourage interaction. You just need to be careful that threads on controversial subject don’t get out of hand.
Adiadi – I completely agree. Moderators represent you and how you want your community to be perceived. If your moderators are friendly and approachable, you will encourage long term visitor loyalty.
mobile – You’re right; moderators are an integral part of any online community and that is why they need to be given clear direction from the community owner as to their role and what is expected of them.
January 8th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
In any forum Moderators are most important person. I believe
that Whether a forum will be successful or not depends on the moderators part to promote the forum. Thanks for this great one.
January 10th, 2008 at 4:32 pm
Counterfeit – Good moderators are extremely important to any forum. Even more important than moderators though, is the quality of the content contained within the forum!
January 28th, 2008 at 10:27 pm
I believe that moderators should also act as role models for the rest of the users. They should be able to find a happy medium between being too strict and being push overs.
January 30th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Zane – I completely agree. Members often follow the examples set by staff members; if your moderators are friendly and welcoming, your members will often be the same way.
February 7th, 2008 at 7:40 am
Hi all, I am a moderator on Computerforums.org, which has 31,240 members as of today. I’d just like to say that Martin wrote a great post that I agree with completely. Over at CF, we the mods do not just look for rule breaking. We like to think of ourselves as normal members, with privileges that allow us to make the forum better. There is nothing worse than a trigger happy mod.
I just want to say one thing though. In your article, you mentioned “If you or your moderators crack down on members the second they step out of line, you will be sending a negative signal to your community that free speech is not tolerated on your site.”
I agree with that, but from personal experience on a very large forum, I have to say that a certain degree of strictness does have to apply. Interfering with what people have to say (editing out facts/opinions/information from posts is not OK, but not allowing flaming is. If freedom of speech for a certain member means being able to flame others, then it is not truly freedom of speech.
Thanks,
Thelis
February 7th, 2008 at 9:14 pm
Thelis – You’re right that at times moderation does need to be stricter than normal. Moderators should be encouraged to take a laissez-faire approach to their role as enforcers, but shouldn’t be scared or hesitant to take decisive action when it is needed.
Thanks for your contribution – I hope you’ll stick around, and I look forward to reading more of your comments in the future.
February 19th, 2008 at 8:20 am
Would you then say that strictness is an attribute that comes from size? So, the bigger the board the stricter the policy?
February 20th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
BeoPuppy – I do find that larger forums sometimes have stricter rules, but this is often because they are more able to afford to lose members that are put off by an extensive list of rules or through bans.
I still think a large forum can be successful without draconian rules and regulations, though – it all depends on your community’s personality.
February 24th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
Great post, depending on how big the forum is then it means you will need more moderators
February 26th, 2008 at 12:13 am
[...] moderators? Community Spark emphasizes that mods function best when their primary role is creating content and encouraging member interaction, not policing the community and repressing [...]
February 27th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
[...] additional help when it comes to moderation. Even if your members are fantastically well behaved, moderators are useful to have as they are a reassuring, visible presence in your community. They help encourage [...]
February 27th, 2008 at 8:05 pm
Jason – You’re right that larger forums tend to require more moderators, but this isn’t necessarily always the case! Thanks for your comment.
March 1st, 2008 at 6:19 pm
I agree with you. When forum owners get some volunteer moderators, they forget that it is their sole responsibility to keep the forum clean and not mods.
March 4th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
Gadgets – You’re right. Moderators should be a complement to your own job of checking all is running well with your forum. They shouldn’t completely replace you!
March 11th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
I post on a forum/site of 3,000 users, and growing, that has no moderators. You can post anything you please as long as it is not illegal.
March 14th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
[...] The Real Purpose of Forum Moderators Revealed, How to Effectively Moderate Forums, and don’t miss this: Archived List of Articles on Forum Development, by Martin Reed, The Community Spark. [...]
March 15th, 2008 at 7:51 pm
Max – You give a good example of a rule that is simple, basic and effective. Thanks for your comment.
March 18th, 2008 at 12:47 am
Quite welcome. That rule is enforced through community moderation. Seems to work so far, will see as how effective that is as the number of users grow.
March 19th, 2008 at 7:35 pm
Max Power – You may find that as the community grows a few more rules may be needed, but until then they should continue to work on encouraging debate and interaction rather than stifling it through an excessive number of rules.
March 23rd, 2008 at 12:42 pm
Reminds me of a forum I joined once, a few years back. Long story short, the forum died (users moved to another identical forum) because the moderators were acting like police officers – just like you said
. Instead of promoting more meaningful discussions, they were more interested in deleting posts.
March 24th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
They’d have to be regular contributers and have a feel for the subject in question before given the role
March 24th, 2008 at 6:06 pm
Nai – An all too common story, yet many forum developers fail to realise this. Forum moderation should be focussed on encouraging interaction, not hindering it!
Plumber – Agreed. They should also have demonstrated their maturity, commitment, enthusiasm and passion for the community before being invited to become a staff member, too.
March 26th, 2008 at 11:51 pm
Awesome article every host should read this, A moderator should not be a censor
March 27th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
thank you for the advice. i’m starting a new community and your blog is very helpful.
March 29th, 2008 at 12:31 am
If you want to see a police state along with a weekly brawl, you should visit dnforum.com.
March 29th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Ash – Thanks for your kind comment. A moderator should be a censor, but only when they absolutely have to be!
Viet – Good luck with your new community; keep in touch and let us know how you get on.
Sad – Well, I don’t use that site so I can’t comment on the accuracy of your statement!
March 30th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
I know one well-known forum board that have too many moderators (and few administrators) practicing the very worst sort of forum moderating tactics. They put too many members in state of perpetual fear of being scolded, punished or censored, their accounts suspended or demoted to PG-rated forum boards (it’s strictly a hierarchical-leveled forum board with few graded forum boards). Moderators there are behaving like PC-obsessed commissars “empowered” to do what their tyrannical forum administrators ordered them to. Censorship is their rule in order to keep the forum board “thriving”, which it’s bullsh*t. The name of the forum board is called Above Top Secret. Google it. I’m not kidding about what I said and I left it because I cannot stand that kind of practices. There’s no room for interaction or freedom of expression at ATS.
April 2nd, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Dogboy – Thanks for the great example. Whilst I am not aware of the site you mention, the fact is that whenever people are hesitant to post for fear of repercussions, your community is in a very bad place.
Moderators are there to encourage debate and interaction – not stifle it!
April 14th, 2008 at 3:37 am
I just opened this site, theofftopic.com and I definitely can relate. I know the last thing I want is my userbase to become fearful of the mods.
You have to find the balance between letting people just troll all day and protecting the rights of the users.
April 15th, 2008 at 10:58 am
Off Topic – You’ve got it spot on. However, if you lead by example you shouldn’t have too much of a problem with trolls – be welcoming and engaging and your members will follow your lead. Good luck with your new site.
May 21st, 2008 at 4:24 am
A good moderator will save you time as well. I’m lucky and have two good ones that have really taken it on. I don’t always have the patience to go through it all the time. One of them is addicted to it. He may need therapy.
May 25th, 2008 at 4:31 pm
Dave – A moderator addicted to your community, eh? I guess in a way that’s a good thing, let’s just hope they don’t turn into a bunny boiler!!
May 31st, 2008 at 9:56 am
I have a really hard time giving up control, especially with a forum I have nurtured. It is very difficult for me to add new moderators.
Tri
June 3rd, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Tri – Yup, it can be hard. As long as you choose the right people, and effectively communicate your expectations to them though, there is no reason why you should see it as a loss of control.
June 26th, 2008 at 8:07 pm
The moderators on the forum I used to go to (I left due to the mods, actually) were pretty awful – they banned at a pindrop and just overall sucked. I’d refer them to your guide if I were still there =D
June 26th, 2008 at 11:25 pm
Dofollow – Thanks for your comment. This just goes to further strengthen my argument that forum moderators are there to encourage interaction – NOT stifle it!
July 15th, 2008 at 2:40 am
After being an active member of Gametrailer’s forum for a few years now, i have developed a special hatred for forum mods. They can be so rude at times and can ban your account without notice and for the silliest reasons. So mods can go overboard just because they feel as though they are “the law” and we have to obey them. And don’t even get me started on locked topics..lol.
July 17th, 2008 at 12:49 am
Quotes – You give a great example of why poor moderation can be extremely damaging to a community. Moderators should be there to primarily help members and encourage interaction – not to act as police officers! Over-zealous moderators can destroy a community and alienate members, as you have experienced yourself.
August 28th, 2008 at 6:11 pm
What a great post – this was really helpful. My moderators are definitely more the “police” type, but it makes so much more sense to have them be encouraging threads to continue, asking questions, starting new threads, etc. I will for sure be communicating new expectations to my moderators.
Thanks again for your post, really helpful!!
September 23rd, 2008 at 9:11 pm
I’ve left several forums because of moderators, they really have no useful purpose. Deleting a thread here and there, sometimes subjectively, doesn’t amount to an absolutely necessary action for the forum to survive and prosper.
September 26th, 2008 at 3:27 pm
The importance of a moderator depends on the type of the forum. Forums where politics and religion and even celebrities are discussed, moderators needs to be on a full-day duty.
September 30th, 2008 at 1:43 pm
I was banned for disagreeing with the site owner of DWF.NU.I have helped others there for 3 years to understand my late fathers invention and it’s history but this iron fist site owner who bought the forum has been putting grease under my tires by constantly suggesting the wrong help.This of course forced me to disagree and offer my oppinion since i have hands on experience with this unique product.He wanted to build my official website at one point which i declined because i was aware of his controling manner.Well this upset him.Long story short the guy has belittled me numourous times since and i finally reacted with a few flamatory remarks.I feel I should be given the chance to apologize to the regular community before being banned.There is a moderator for the Synchronar section but hardly ever has he posted anything related to the watch.Anyway the site owner with motto” a community based on honesty and helpfulness” has not been polite at all in his emails to me and tells me no one within one mile of my office will be able to post.Is this too much censorship?Opinions?
October 1st, 2008 at 7:46 am
i’ve seen that happen in one forum, where it seemed that an administrator was inadvertently offended by one of the members, in one of the threads, so the administrator berated him, locked the thread, and threatened to do so for other similar threads started by that member. left a really bad taste in my mouth, as it did feel repressive.
October 6th, 2008 at 7:59 pm
Julie – You need to moderate your forums in the style that is right for you and your community. I prefer to be more laissez-faire and feel moderators should be used primarily to encourage interaction – not stifle it by excessively policing the community.
Mine – Certain topics, posts and threads do need to be deleted; I would never advocate complete and unrestricted free speech in an online community. That being said, there is a fine line between ‘moderation’ and ‘policing’.
Soham – I completely agree! Some topics require stricter and closer moderation than others.
Synchroserious – Thanks for sharing your experience. You have shown exactly what happens when moderators become a little too power hungry. Of course, you shouldn’t have reacted how you did but sometimes it is hard not to bite. Yet another reason why forum moderation should be done carefully – excessive ‘policing’ can actually create more problems than it solves.
Kouji – Well, it depends on what the banned member posted. I have banned members on occasion for being personally offensive towards either me or my staff and would do so again in the future. Sometimes strict action is necessary, but it should be the exception rather than the norm.
October 7th, 2008 at 5:51 am
I agree with you. The insights you have so provided here helps and I have enjoyed this post. More power Martin!
October 15th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
I don’t understand how people don’t think this way. I used to be part of an online gaming community. The primary method of communication and information about the game was through the forums and not the website. I even brought it up a few times… about how being that strict wasn’t helping community building.
But the mods and admins there were so strict that they stifled everything. There were so many rules and procedures to everything. If you were new, and you didn’t follow one of the rules, or if you forgot to go by 1 of the 2,000 rules, you were sometimes permanently penalized. It was a free game, but payment gave you extra perks and equipment. I paid for the game because i enjoyed playing it. I stopped playing the game because I started resenting the community and its unnecessary stringencies. There were way too many mods for the forum anyway. And when they all behaved like prison guards, I left. And I took the money I would have spent with me.
When I joined, I was a student with low income and spent what I could spare. Now I’m working with a higher income and can spare more, but have no interest in it anymore. I hope to one day build a community, and to NEVER do what they did.
October 23rd, 2008 at 9:39 pm
Colin – Thanks for your kind comment, I am glad you enjoyed the article.
Yaj – Thanks for the comment and for sharing your experiences. As you say, if moderators are too strict and have no discretion they can end up stifling the community – exactly the opposite of what we (as community managers and developers) are aiming for.
Online communities should be welcoming, inviting and friendly. Yes, they need rules and they need moderators to enforce the rules but there needs to be some amount of discretion. Moderators should be promoting interaction, not discouraging it.
October 24th, 2008 at 4:46 pm
I completely agree with your assertion – an involved moderating team that ensures every post is replied to and actively facilitates communitication is way better than the team who justs locks threads.
October 25th, 2008 at 4:28 am
I’m liberal when it comes to moderating. Forum moderators should be there to help. There’s only myself and my co-host that moderates the forums, I didn’t want to get in a situation where we had different moderators for different categories, everyone doing things differently, everyone competing to see who can be the strictest.
My co-host & I work very closely and they know how I like things ran, so we’ve never had any problems. It’s very rare a post is deleted or locked.
If I do delete a post, though, I send a polite PM reminding the poster of site rules. I don’t publically scold nor do I penalize them.
I like to pass on examples as it may help others get an idea of how to approach “troublesome” posters.
One of the rare posts I delete happened yesterday, a certain member was banned a while back for persistently belittling members in the serious section. She has no social etiquette at all, she seems to lack the ability to discuss things in a civil manner, she almost always resorts to abuse – and I mean nasty abuse, not your ordinary in the heat of the moment abuse that you would normally expect in a serious section.
But anyway after behaving for a few weeks after rejoining (she was banned from another forum and e-mailed in to beg me to unban her from here – she ran out of places to go lol) yesterday she made one of her old-style abusive posts that i had to delete, so I sent her a standard PM my co-host & I decided on. We used to issue warnings, such as “First warning” as the subject. Now we issue “Code of Conduct reminders” – not much difference, it’s basically a warning. Just a much more friendly one.
Hi, *** (name censored).
This is to remind you of our site rules. Attempts at belittling and offensive remarks just for the sake of seeing how far you can cross the line will not be tolerated at Friendly Chat.
Please feel free to air your opinion by all means, but do it in a civilized manner. Abuse, insults, and belittling are not necessary on a site such as this.
It’s policy now to remind members in breach of rules of the site’s Code of Conduct.
Quote:
By using these forums you agree to the following rules;
* No signing up just to spam. If you sign up, spam, then disappear your post will simply be deleted.
* No signing up with the sole intention to belittle or abuse members of the community.
* No being offensive just for the sake of being offensive.
* No soliciting, advertising or condoning illegal activities.
* We will not delete your account on request if we feel you’re just throwing a temper tantrum. If you wish to leave, then simply don’t login!
* Being an international site, we must ask you to stick to the universal language of ‘English’.
* Usernames that include sexual, harassing, intimidating or generally inappropriate comments or words are not permitted.
* We do not allow the spamming of URLs, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, real names, MSN addresses or any other similar content.
* You agree to only sign up with one username, not to spam or post abuse to fellow members.
If you have any questions, complaints or criticism don’t hesitate to reply. We are happy to discuss site policy in a civilized manner.
_________________
Tom,
FC Management
I got no reply back, but later that day she was posting on the site again, and being much more civil in her posts. I think this kind of approach is much better than deleting, locking & banning.
That, to me, is how a moderator should handle things – I lead by example and my co-host & I are always consistent.
October 27th, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Trevas – I am glad you agree! Thanks for your comment.
Smiley – You definitely don’t want to have too many moderators cracking down on every infraction your members make! Leading by example is definitely the way to go. It’s definitely a good idea to contact members advising them of any violations they make – otherwise you aren’t really giving them the opportunity to change their behaviour for the better.
November 1st, 2008 at 10:07 am
I absolutely agree with you on the moderators acting as a police point. I have been on the recieving end once when I was given 3 infractions within 10 minutes for a single offence on a popular webmaster forum. I woke up next day and logged in only to see that “You are banned for seven days” . Not the kind of start you would like for a sunday.
November 6th, 2008 at 10:38 pm
I’ve acted as a mod on a few forums and I agree that the laissez faire attitude is best. Real communities are not all peace and harmony – they’re made up of real people who, from time to time, might not get on.
I think the role of the moderator is to keep the conversation flow open – removing spam, ensuring there’s no bullying and acting as the 2nd point of contact for community questions (the first being the community itself)
November 17th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
Yatch – Very odd; I wonder why the moderators saw fit to warn you multiple times for the same infraction?!?
Mark – I agree, but sometimes it is a challenge to determine what is playful ‘banter’, and what content needs to be removed!
December 4th, 2008 at 9:50 pm
I’ve been on a community for about a year. I applied and was recently made a moderator. I haven’t been given any instructions on what is expected of me. The other moderators and admin have not been communicating with me; I’m slightly confused. Any advice? I have no clue what’s going on…
December 6th, 2008 at 12:12 am
Mila – It makes me cringe to hear this happening, but it doesn’t come as a surprise. I think you should contact the administrator (or whoever gave you moderator status) and ask them exactly what is expected of you. Ask them what you can and can’t do, and how you should go about it.
Good luck!
January 15th, 2009 at 1:44 pm
I think that if a person owns a forum they have a right to whatever they please. For a more safe forum there should be places were politics, religion, and even sports should be banned; but there should be a spot for people to talk about it if they please. There is no reason to have people’s voices not heard, just make the section like an 18 or over place so nobody gets in trouble for swearing and what not.
January 21st, 2009 at 2:57 am
Hello,
I’ve seen a few people mention that too many mods can feel overbearing. Do you think that there is a good ratio to go for? If there are too many, I feel like it might become too “in-crowd”-like, and regular members might feel sheepish. Assuming the mods are polite and encouraging discussion and answering questions, can there be too many?
January 21st, 2009 at 2:50 pm
Anthony – I find that most abusive users are over the age of 18; age restriction doesn’t really solve anything. Regardless, do you really want an area of your community that will be full of abuse and offensive content?
Matt – Mods shouldn’t be overbearing. You need to emphasise the fact that they are members of the community, too. Make them identifiable, but give them personal names. Ensure they are involved and active in the community. Ensure they are approachable and friendly.
Hardcore members can make your community appear segregated, just like having too many moderators can. It’s a challenge. Just have as many moderators as your community needs. If there isn’t much intervention required, and the community is small then one person is just fine. Grow your staff numbers as your community demands and requires.
January 30th, 2009 at 4:49 am
I feel that forum members should be allowed to discuss politics and religion. This is a free country and freedom of speech is our right. Saying that, I feel if things get out of hand or there’s too much nastiness then of course, a moderator should step in and calm it down and if that doesn’t work, remove the thread. Debate is good and healthy as long as it’s kept civil.
I’ve was just recently banned from a forum just for not telling everyone what sex I was and that I was telling stories. The moderators felt I was lying to the members on the forum so my account was deactivated.
I admitted to a moderator in a private email that i was gay after he asked a personal question and 5 days later my account was deactivated. I mean in this day and age.
What kind of moderating is that? It’s not for them to judge people or their opinions on topics.
I’m a member now of the MyLesPaul forum and that’s how a forum should be run. The modertors there are not judgemental and they don’t go locking threads and deactivating accts. Thanks for treating us like adults and giving us the respect and freedom all people/members deserve.
February 24th, 2009 at 11:02 am
One community manager I know calls herself (in the moderating role): “traffic cop with empathy”
I think that sums it up really well. She is there to guide, she CAN be firm (but isn’t that way by default) and is the sympathetic ear to the other members.
bobo the clown: I’m so sorry to hear that happened to you.
I’d like to say I’m surprised but unfortunately I’m not. What sort of forum was it, if you don’t mind me asking?
February 25th, 2009 at 11:49 am
Hi, interesting reading all of the above posts and wondered whether there are any ladies posting on here ? Because one book’s discussion forum I often visit has 2 only male laissez-faire moderators yet sometimes the books under discussion are written by, and I think mostly for, women.
The question is could the fact that the moderators are male make you feel inhibited in any way ? I suppose the reverse scenario might be possible too ?
February 28th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
Richie – It’s an interesting issue, and depends on a number of variables. Namely, how sensitive the moderators are and the subject matter of the discussions taking place. Ultimately though, I think as long as a moderator has the right skills, their gender shouldn’t be an issue.
February 28th, 2009 at 5:21 pm
I try to make sure the % of my staff are mostly women. I feel the users can relate to them more, women tend to be slightly less powermad than males, and more empathetic. They tend to listen more and are more reasonable.
My female co-host for example, I don’t think she’s ever had to ban anyone since she started as staff. Anyone who wasn’t on my compulsory ban list anyway. She prefers to use gag and then PM them and talk to them. I see some amazing turn-arounds regarding people’s attitude after she has gotten them into PM.
Because I advertise FC as a “perv-free site”, and we do all we can to keep perverts out, the majority of my regulars are unsurprisingly female. They’ve finally found a site they can chat in without getting bombed by people ASLing them or asking them if they’re horny! So it’s only natural they feel more secure with a dominantly female staff base.
Then of course if they need to feel the wrath of authority they have me.
February 28th, 2009 at 5:22 pm
The last part being a last resort.
April 22nd, 2009 at 3:08 am
Some one should really post this to the people who moderate over at a forum I know, talk about a police state im sick of being hit over the head for having an opinion and be accused of abuse and harassement for no reason.