Quote:
Originally posted by KingsOfLeon1994
Is there some sort of walk through or manual for new mods? |
Yes! There are some very useful threads throughout Mod Squad that help new recruits figure out how we work, how we treat various situations, and what we strive to do as a team. They were very helpful when I started out and can even serve as a good refresher course for older moderators, too.
Come to think of it though, maybe I'll make a cute little guide to consolidate all of that for the next batch of new mods that comes along.
Quote:
Originally posted by Javan
Lol. It's been clear for a while that Mods have been asked to go draconian because the server can't handle most of its active members. They want/need people banned.
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We have not been asked by the administration to moderate in any specific way other than disallowing explicit content completely and cracking down on vulgar content. That is the only change. We also have not discussed collectively any need to be more harsh or strict.
I'd like to take this time to address the posts of Bey Admired, Jared, and C/H/A/N/E/L in the past day or so, as well as general posts about the moderation.
A lot of people seem to think that they are entitled to a certain interpretation of the rules, and they fail to acknowledge (though they may be entirely aware) that any given moderator might actually disagree completely with what kind of punishment is appropriate or necessary in a particular situation; in addition, many people feel as though they have appropriate standing to criticize the moderation as a whole, and in a very pointed manner.
In truth, I think that the moderation here deserves a bit more respect for the fact that we have been dealing with warnings and bans and the like for quite a while now - aside from our two newest moderators, who I feel are doing a wonderful job, the next newest batch of moderators is comprised of myself, Phoenetic, supaspaz, and Innovator. We have been moderators for well over two years now, and we have certainly had time to make sure that our interpretation of the rules is sound. In addition, we are more than open to change and criticism - the only prerequisite to accepting suggestions and criticism, at least for me, is that such things are delivered in a respectful or civil manner. Mind you, I don't mean just not attacking us and calling us biased rats - I mean that the person should actually have a depth of understanding with regard to the rules that gives them the position to speak on these things, and should demonstrate it within their posts. Some of the posts I've seen coming from Bey Admired and Jared (I'm only using them for the sake of example and because they were recent posts) have had a very dismissive "oh they're just biased, you get used to it" tone, which is actually rather unproductive and a even little questionable coming (in some cases) from members who haven't been here that long.
I'd also like to talk a little bit about attacking individual moderators for team decisions, or vice versa; I think that people should be aware that some decisions are made by individuals and those decisions are at the sole discretion of one moderator. Attacking separate moderators, acting rude toward them, attacking the Squad as a whole, or being excessively rude and demanding in HQ all fail to account for this and place whichever moderator is responding in a tough spot, because we are legitimately discouraged - by each other and by administration - from publicly questioning other moderator's decisions or reversing their decision without talking to them. It serves as a way to make sure we keep respect for our teammates and allow them in turn to feel as though they are a valued member of the team. As far as team decisions go, some members kind of blow up about them at particular mods or in general, but they need to understand that these decisions are made by majority vote or a similar process; not everyone agrees with them, but these are decisions for which it is deemed necessary to have a solid consensus among all Mod Squad members as to how to handle it. There are recent team decisions I do not support, but enforce as a part of my role; there are others I support but which others do not, and enforce as a part of their role.
I just sense that there's a general lack of understanding as to how our team comes to certain decisions and how it operates overall, as well as a lack of meaningful communication
about the topic, and I wanted to make some clarifications if possible. As always if anyone has questions, they can be posted here and we can try to answer them to the best of our ability. Let's make this year a bit more civil in mod-member relations and build a greater understanding of each other and the processes that govern day-to-day ATRL activity!
