To think Mumsnet is no longer the bastion of free speech that it was

[MumsTheWordFact]

I've noticed a number of threads that I've been following have been deleted lately. The latest one was about a mother saying she had been 'cancelled' by her children.

I even had my own thread pulled down about a month or so ago with absolutely no reason given as to why.

Have Google or Facebook bought out Mumsnet and I just didn't hear about it?

I think MN actually lets a lot of awful posts stand

But they will only see them if they are reported, so it's not that simple. I also think that people join MN not realising that, and believe it's fully moderated like some other sites.

Yes very true @Sparklingbrook
I should rephrase as there are still a lot of awful posts on MN, even with the guidelines (perhaps because they are never reported)

[quote dreamingbohemian]@50ShadesOfCatholic I agree. I think MN actually lets a lot of awful posts stand.[/quote]
Yeah it gives the site a terrible reputation. And does nothing to endear the English to the rest of the world who already think they are uptight snobs. 😔

I wish it was nicer. Sometimes I think posters should have to kinda earn their stripes before posting freely. Like having to be a member for a couple of weeks before posting, then on a sort of orange plan for first 30 posts before achieving green light. I know it sounds childish but it might weed out the most miserable posters who continuously bring down the mood.

@MothExterminator

I never saw the mother thread.

It is beyond sad if a mum cannot ask for parenting advice (I assume it was that since “mother” was in the title). I thought this was a site where parents got advice .

What was wrong with it? Was the mum herself “not in the spirit” or was the replies wrong?

Moth it wasn't that one but yesterday an OP posted about getting a booster since they were pregnant. 90% was just people giving her dogs abuse and deliberately ignoring her question. It was deleted because it turned into people trying to help and also shrieking telling offs.

One of my posts was deleted for saying "transwomen are not women" while another was deleted for calling an individual - who was not named and who was not part of the thread - "vile".

I should add that what I said is legally protected under law, but was deleted for "not being part of civil debate". So, even if what you say is legal and is not directed at an individual, it can be deleted.

Its easy to focus on the negative but Mumsnet is actually one of the few places where people can discuss views pretty openly. I think mumsnet are doing a pretty good job in what is quite a toxic culture in society at large (and not just the UK either).

I applaud Mumsnet for this.

Some threads attract particular attention, like the cancelled mother one, which result in lots of screen shots plastered over certain corners of Twitter. I’m not surprised that MN find it best to remove these and not give the opportunity for often out of context comments to be thrown around on Twitter.

I am still curious as to what exactly JKR said was so egregious?

I was told of for supposedly victim shaming. I'd said that I agreed with the OP but also understood the other side.

OPs and their supporters have free reins on victim shaming. Those not agreeing with the trend though is another matter.

And does nothing to endear the English to the rest of the world who already think they are uptight snobs.

Because only English people post on MN.

I applaud Mumsnet for not being dragged to the far right. There is so much toxicity on social media that I’m really worried for when my kids are old enough to join. Society is becoming nastier, more aggressive.

It’s slipping into the real world where people talk to people as if they’re still behind a screen, saying all kinds of nastiness. What some people decry as ‘PC gawwn mad!’ and ‘you can’t say anything anymore’ used to be called good manners.

There are plenty of other places to post crap about people who aren’t like you. Why do some of you want to pollute the entire internet with your misery and hate?

@WomanStanleyWoman

There hasn’t been free speech for a long time when it comes to certain topics - specifically anything involving the surnames McCann or Markle.

‘Not in the spirit’ seems to be a catch-all phrase that doesn’t actually mean anything, but allows mods to delete at will.

Well, when it's bile spewed about the people who carry those names, that's fair enough tbf. Which it always is.

MN was never free from censorship, and has always been run and read by prudes and reactionaries. Twas ever thus.

Any posts about the Bell Curve, or Holocaust revisionism would have been reported and taken down quickly. Anti-trans bigotry seems to be treated in a similar way to racist intolerance.

Personally, I'm all for total free speech, but I know that would be unacceptable to the majority of people on here, and MN is a commercial orgnisation that exists to make a profit.

It always amuses me how those who complain the most about free speech tend to only believe in it for themselves.

People get really nasty and personal if you take a different stance to them - especially over covid .

@BigYellowHat

I once got called racist and had my post deleted. It was just before that Black Mumsnetter board was implemented. It was clear that no-one had read my post, especially people 12 pages down who had just piled on 😂 It seems that you need to don your hard hat if you mention BAME/black on certain threads. FWIW, I was defending something that had happened in the newspaper.

When Sue Barker got dropped from A Question Of Sport, I started a thread saying I thought it was a great pity that one of the few older women in a high profile TV job was being pushed out. More than one poster told me I was obviously a racist trying to hide behind pretend concern about ageism and sexism - presumably because of the widespread story at the time that Alex Scott was going to take over.

Given that what actually happened in the end was a white male comedian with no sporting background got the job, it seems my concerns were actually pretty valid.

@Washingtonirving79

MN was never free from censorship, and has always been run and read by prudes and reactionaries. Twas ever thus.

Any posts about the Bell Curve, or Holocaust revisionism would have been reported and taken down quickly. Anti-trans bigotry seems to be treated in a similar way to racist intolerance.

Personally, I'm all for total free speech, but I know that would be unacceptable to the majority of people on here, and MN is a commercial orgnisation that exists to make a profit.

It always amuses me how those who complain the most about free speech tend to only believe in it for themselves.

I couldn't agree more

It's never been free speech and it's never made any claim to be such

It's a private platform that we all guest on, we have no right to say anything, and have no right to expect to see it stand

It always amuses me how those who complain the most about free speech tend to only believe in it for themselves.

I am all for free speech for everyone, with the same rules applied to everyone. If I see a post I disagree with, I either respond once and then let it go or scroll past without responding.

I've seen real women being called all sorts on here. But call a trans-woman a name or directly criticise them and you'll be cancelled. You must never criticise a trans woman. If they're literally women, why is there separate rules for criticising them or calling them names? I'd like to say, I don't personally agree with name calling. But I don't think we should have a scared caste of men who get increased protection by mumsnet.

@Franca123

I've seen real women being called all sorts on here. But call a trans-woman a name or directly criticise them and you'll be cancelled. You must never criticise a trans woman. If they're literally women, why is there separate rules for criticising them or calling them names? I'd like to say, I don't personally agree with name calling. But I don't think we should have a scared caste of men who get increased protection by mumsnet.

I agree with you, @Franca123. There are sacred cows on MN.

@Washingtonirving79 is your argument that I must be wrong because I'm a racist and a daily mail reader?! People are starting to realise that shouting bigot! is the best TRAs have. I'd work on honing your arguments if I was you.

[quote Franca123]@Washingtonirving79 is your argument that I must be wrong because I'm a racist and a daily mail reader?! People are starting to realise that shouting bigot! is the best TRAs have. I'd work on honing your arguments if I was you.[/quote]
I'm not saying you're wrong or right, rather that there are a number of areas of speech and thought where people are very precious. Trans rights and racism are two such areas, and MN has always behaved in the same censorious way. You're only complaining because it affects what you want to say. I've not seen your complaints when it affects others.

And, to prove my point, my perfectly innocuous post has been deleted. It said nothing offensive, but contradicted some people's deep-held beliefs about their always being right and others being wrong. Not surprising, and nothing new.

The perpetually offended have always been with us.

@StoneofDestiny

Has a 'we've taken this thread down to investigate' thread ever come back up again? I've never seen one.

Sure -- usually in the "relationships" section. They come back up and it's almost always something along the lines of "We've checked this out and the OP is genuine" and then some words about troll hunting.

@daimbarsatemydogsbone

YANBU - thread deletions are like a F1 race directors' decisions.

FIA cloned with UEFA, the nightmore scenario.