[sugar] Mail backlog; list moderators needed

[Bernie Innocenti]

Samuel Klein wrote:

> I just forwarded a bunch of mail from non-subscribers from the past two 
> weeks.   I am looking for 1-2 people to help moderate this list -- this 
> involves filtering spam, passing on messages from non-list members, 
> keeping heated discussions on-topic, and moderating the rare overzealous 
> poster.  Please reply to me off-list if interested.

Some time ago, I posted the following comments about moderation
to a closed OLPC list.

This is not to say there shouldn't be someone managing the list.
Just that they should not apply a strict moderation policy.

Do you agree on this?


-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: on transparency
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:38:29 +0200
From: Bernie Innocenti <bernie at laptop.org>
To: Samuel Klein <meta.sj at gmail.com>
CC: Marco Pesenti Gritti <mpg at redhat.com>, tech-team at laptop.org

Samuel Klein wrote:
> If we can clarify this, the list mods can be encouraged to keep 
> discussion on topic.

Strict moderation and splitting into micro-topic groups was attempted
by the venerable FidoNet and Usenet, two very large pre-Internet
networks.  In my experience, it created more trouble than benefit.

A large part of the traffic was moderators bitching with subscribers
about what is on topic and how the policy should be modified to allow
or deny a particular behavior.  Lots of posting would begin with
disclaimers: "I'm not sure this is on topic, please forgive me if
it's not...".

The most popular argument was: "you are wasting everybody's bandwidth!",
along with estimates of how many bytes were transferred to convey the
inappropriate topic.  Then when bandwidth was not a problem any more,
it became a S/N ratio issue.

Some individuals cannot suffer to hear others expressing their own
ideas and bring up bandwidth and S/N excuses as a way to censor them.
This is why moderation in public forums was a bed idea and was dropped
in modern Internet.

What works very well, instead, is self moderation and peer-to-peer
moderation, because people in general learn to avoid behavior that
upsets everybody else.  I think the Wikipedia works on the very same
principle.

-- 
   \___/
  _| o |  Bernie Innocenti - http://www.codewiz.org/
  \|_X_|  "It's an education project, not a laptop project!"