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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

to want to post on MN and not worry about seeing it in the press?

36 replies

Swanclaw · 23/05/2016 12:50

Recently seen links to mumsnet posts as the basis of stories in the daily fail, guardian and now Wales online:
www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/would-you-leave-10-month-11371260
AIBU to expect journalists to, you know, do some journalism rather than trawling mumsnet??

OP posts:
ilovesooty · 23/05/2016 12:53

It's not some private sacrosanct place. It's a public forum and it's up to posters to self regulate.

What do you define as "doing some journalism" ?

bibbitybobbityyhat · 23/05/2016 12:55

I agree with you, but sadly there is nothing to be done about it. There have been many many many threads about this before.

GretchenBeckett · 23/05/2016 12:56

It's a risk you take if you post on a public forum.

scandichick · 23/05/2016 12:58

I would expect them to (or rather their editors to direct them to) focus on news, not any old fluff.

Sir Terry Pratchett had a great definition of news as something someone would rather you didn't find out about... unfortunately, we don't seem to want to pay for that anymore.

YABU, OP, unless you go out and buy a newspaper. Maybe not the Daily Mail...

VioletBam · 23/05/2016 12:59

This is not a new thing OP. I've been on MN for 8 years now...and it's always happened.

The internet is not private. This is being read by many, many more people who post.

YABU

howtorebuild · 23/05/2016 12:59

Go to OTBT or 30 days?

potoftea · 23/05/2016 13:01

I think it is terrible and horrible actually. I know its the internet and therefore public, but I also know that some people I know are 100% not on mumsnet and while I'd still be careful about identifying details, I know I can post about them here and they'll never read it.
But once it goes into other forums its different, I don't know whether they read them so would have to presume that they might.
I think we have lost something that we had now that all posts can be reposted anywhere.

wasonthelist · 23/05/2016 13:04

YABVU OP not least for starting the 20 millionth thread asking the exact same thing. May I suggest talking to people in person, in secret, for items you don't wish to share with anyone - certainly not posting on MN.

MitzyLeFrouf · 23/05/2016 13:04

I'm afraid it's just the way it is. It's easy pickings for journalists who need to come up with some fluffy filler. Just don't post anything identifying and you've nothing to worry about.

Pipbin · 23/05/2016 13:04

I agree with you on 'doing some journalism'.
Copying a forum piece is not journalism. Use it as a starting point to ask questions and investigate the legalities.

wasonthelist · 23/05/2016 13:05

I think we have lost something that we had now that all posts can be reposted anywhere.

Eh? anyone has always be able to do a screen grab or copy and paste of pretty much anything on the internet.

BaskingTrout · 23/05/2016 13:06

just because you might not like or choose the website that your post ends up on (such as the Mail) in practical terms, its no different from your post being on Mumsnet.

absolutely anyone in the world who has an internet connection can read what you have written here and copy/link it to any other. and vice versa. if you don't want your information in the public domain, then the only thing you can do is don't post it in the first place.

wasonthelist · 23/05/2016 13:06

Don't post sensitive stuff.
Don't buy the Daily Heil
Don't visit the Daily Heil website.

bibbitybobbityyhat · 23/05/2016 13:06

Potoftea - nothing has been lost. It's just that it is happening more frequently. The first time I became aware of a thread from Mumsnet appearing in the national press was 2007/2008 (moldies scandal, can't quite remember when that was) but no doubt it had happened before then.

I wish it wasn't so - in that respect I'm the same as the op.

Gardenbirdy · 23/05/2016 13:12

I know it's a public forum but it does seem to be happening a lot recently - I've seen 3 stories in as many weeks.

MitzyLeFrouf · 23/05/2016 13:15

As far as Mumsnet is concerned it's good news for them. More traffic. They're hardly going to try and dissuade journos from writing 'today on MN...' style stories.

potoftea · 23/05/2016 13:17

I think its just happening so often now, it feels different. I know mumsnet was always mentioned in the media, I joined ten years ago after reading a piece in the Sunday times that discussed it, but to me it still is a niche forum, and I know none of my friends use it as I've often recommended it to them, and it feels a bit private.
The recent wedding gift thread went so public in several countries that I was shocked.

BornFreeButinEUchains · 23/05/2016 13:22

it has gone insane,curry thread was mentioned as well on wright show

acasualobserver · 23/05/2016 13:25

This again.

araiba · 23/05/2016 13:30

if we fill mn with threads about mn being in the news, maybe it wont be reported

i like your plan op

Asprilla11 · 23/05/2016 13:36

As others have said, this an open forum, there will be thousands of people worldwide who are not members but are currently reading various threads.

I came across this site by accident when searching the internet for reviews on bathroom suites and products, there were a couple of long threads on here which proved very useful.

There are so many varied topics discussed on here that all sorts of people will stumble across this site when searching for something seemingly unrelated on the internet, journalists included.

DustyBustle · 23/05/2016 13:48

I agree, I don't like it much by there's nowt to do about it.

And for every thread which inadvertently ends up as DM or Matthew Wright fodder, there are four more made up stories which are intentionally shocking and 'hilarious' so as to deliberately compete for the next penis beaker.

Puzzledandpissedoff · 23/05/2016 13:58

Maybe I don't fully understand how this works, but I'm not sure that putting things in 30 Days Only/Off The Beaten Track would necessarily help?

After all, it's become clear that many journalists are MN members, able to access those parts of the site like everyone else, so how would that keep anything under the radar?

MitzyLeFrouf · 23/05/2016 13:59

You don't even need to be a member, anyone can read the boards.

Swipe left for the next trending thread