H
HG 400
Guest
kiwifarms.net
A couple of years ago somebody sent me a link to a tweet. It said: “Moderating comments at the Guardian must be the worst job in the world.” Anyone who has spent enough time “below the line” of articles on the Guardian’s website will understand the sentiment – you will find rants, bile, insults and plenty of trolling.
You will also find genuine insight and brilliant jokes but, somehow, that is not what people take away. They notice the dark stuff, the words that draw blood. Someone telling you that you are wrong is always going to make a bigger impression than someone who agrees with you. Someone telling you that you are both wrong and, to pick a random example, “an utter fuckwit” will have even more impact.
For five years, it was my job. “The worst job in the world,” apparently. I read millions of comments and blocked tens of thousands. As a moderator, you develop a thorough understanding of how online conversation works, how it can be wonderful and enriching and how, if handled badly, it can go very, very wrong.
Good moderation isn’t about setting or controlling an agenda; it is about not letting anyone’s agenda ruin the conversation. Not letting an article about hats get ruined by someone who hates fashion; stopping a heartfelt piece about feeding refugees in Calais being dominated by someone ranting about child abuse in Rotherham; and preventing one man with an axe to grind about the legalisation of cannabis wrecking a scientific conversation about cancer treatment.
https://www.theguardian.com/technol...-in-the-world-my-life-as-a-guardian-moderator
You will also find genuine insight and brilliant jokes but, somehow, that is not what people take away. They notice the dark stuff, the words that draw blood. Someone telling you that you are wrong is always going to make a bigger impression than someone who agrees with you. Someone telling you that you are both wrong and, to pick a random example, “an utter fuckwit” will have even more impact.
For five years, it was my job. “The worst job in the world,” apparently. I read millions of comments and blocked tens of thousands. As a moderator, you develop a thorough understanding of how online conversation works, how it can be wonderful and enriching and how, if handled badly, it can go very, very wrong.
Good moderation isn’t about setting or controlling an agenda; it is about not letting anyone’s agenda ruin the conversation. Not letting an article about hats get ruined by someone who hates fashion; stopping a heartfelt piece about feeding refugees in Calais being dominated by someone ranting about child abuse in Rotherham; and preventing one man with an axe to grind about the legalisation of cannabis wrecking a scientific conversation about cancer treatment.
https://www.theguardian.com/technol...-in-the-world-my-life-as-a-guardian-moderator
