Has mumsnet changed over the years

[YouFoundMe]

I have seen a thread on which a lot of people have said mumsnet has changed from what it used to be 15/20 years ago. I've only been on here for 3/4 months so I'd love to know what has changed .. is it better or worse?(my guess from what people say is that it's now not as good as it was before).. why? What was it like before ..

23 years and I am perpetually shocked at how nasty it can be these days.

I'd agree with this.
Never noticed these mythical 'cliques' either.

It was so cliquey. Remember Mouldies?

The fact it used to be Waitrose was all that was wrong with MN in the olden days. Give me Tesco any day.

But I do miss seeing names I know, although if you dared to have a chat with someone you recognised you were accused of being in a clique.

They didn't ask me. But it was due to mostly the same sort of things mentioned in 2024 - too big, too random, too controlled, not as funny as it used to be, etc

It was terribly funny, and on a different plane of kindness and overall intelligence.

Having to put "lighthearted" at the front of thread was unheard of, whereas now it's required. And that's the decline in a nutshell to me.

There's this new behaviour of posters thinking they're being so clever and a weird self congratulating thing, where they look for any angle, no matter how irrelevant to the thread to make a non point, then sit back, so very pleased with themselves:

OP:"My husband has cleared our account and booked one way flights with his secretary, I don't even know what day it is..."

Posters now: "Do you always cause issue when he has female friends? Are you always this controlling?"

You just wouldn't get such deliberate goading before. It wouldn't have been entertained, but now it's every other comment.

It's still a great place for finding answers to household questions. Best laundry powder. Best bedding etc. And I do love the Christmas board.

But for conversation? Not any more. Whereas that's all I used it for when I joined way back when.

Oh, and; "Are you on glue?"

It's not funny, it's not clever, yet the constant "witty" retort of the posters that need the aforementioned warning that a thread is light hearted.

God,yes. I agree with everything you posted there.

The 'gotcha' thing is one of the worst changes. I find it so tiresome having to scroll past those pointless comments and the inevitable bickering that ensues as a consequence. People who scour threads looking for a small loophole or technicality to pounce upon.

I agree that it’s got less ‘intelligent’, a lot of the questions posed could be solved with 2 second google.

There are a lot of obvious troll posts too.

It’s still useful for information and support, especially pregnancy loss etc. Those communities are very supportive.

I first joined 12 years ago and I know memory can play tricks but I dont think there were as many boring posts like 'AIBU to say it should be jam first on a scone?' and it didn't seem as repetitive with the same subjects being droned on about constantly - MIL, loo brush, tumble drying habits etc. Some topics were always best avoided - SAHM vs working outside the home etc. It was definitely funnier and more informative. Topics like creative writing, what we're reading, housekeeping, in the news, education etc were reliably interesting and good amount of posts wheras now it's largely just AIBU and celebs deaths etc.

God yes. I was a working class single mum and quite lonely in real life at the time (many many years ago) and MN was part of my social life. I’d log on in my laptop on a Friday night with a bottle of wine and laugh my tits off. I also got some amazing parenting advice from certain posters. People could be really caring.
I remembering being a bit surprised how well off and London-y most of the posters seemed but it opened my eyes to the fact that women could find common ground despite social differences.
Now the main demographic sometimes reminds me of that Catherine Tate sketch where the woman purses her lips and goes “disgusting!” about really minor things…it’s like a manifestation of Little England small mindedness and conformity. It used to be quite anarchic.
I’m still a bit addicted but it doesn’t feel like a bunch of mates anymore.
Oh and the spelling, grammar and reading comprehension has down right down the pan. I’m not perfect with my SPAG but now it feels like people are just bashing out a text while walking down the street and don’t care if it makes sense!

Haha note my typos and feel free to pounce on me 😃

I think this sums it up well.

And aren't they so pleased when they announce "interesting first post, OP"..."so you've got one DD aged 4, but on a post last year, you've got a DS"

use your brain dear, she's name changed or switched a small detail because it's quite identifying... especially when we've got tits like you who trawl through someone's whole history to make these announcements

There just weren't these kind of posters before.

As others have said - it was often so so funny. Go and have a root around old classic threads.

I have lots of topics hidden, including AIBU so see less a bit nastiness in my Mn threads - though its shocking how people pounce and then pile on. Its like lots of people don't get a nuance/ don't give the OP the benefit of the doubt anymore.

Yes, the gotchas and constant requests for "source please" in what should be general chat like you'd have at lunchtime at work. Also the "what support are you getting for your anxiety", "what did the police say when you called them" responses when someone is just a bit worried about something and wants to talk it over.

It's the people on it that change themselves and either want/need MN more or less depending on their real life circumstances.
Then blame MN for not meeting their expectations.

I don't agree. It was funny and isn't anymore. It could be unpleasant but the nastiness is relentless now.

I find myself scrolling through Active and finding nothing that interests me.

So yes, I have changed. DD was a toddler when I joined, now she's half way through uni. I still want the laughs and interesting discussions. However, my peer group on here are going on about "peri" and menopause and how shit ageing is. That doesn't interest me so maybe there is hope for this addict and I might break the Bonds of Mumsnet!