Cmon HQ, please may you give us a break now?

[ChaosTrulyReigns]

"This is a wind up" was acceptable in the olden days.

But not now.

There's been a few threads recently where the OP was not about begging, emotional vampires, beyond the pale stuff and that ilk.

Just stuff, that if you were having a conversation with your mates, you'd express incredulity.

Why can't these comments be left to stand, rather than a reflex actoin of just zapping them?

Surely there's a difference between a "you've gotta be kiddin" and trill hunting?

Please, please take each comment/thread as a separate case, I really think there's a danger of spoiling the boards with this eagerness to eradicate any implucation of doubt.

don't loose heart frank anyone could make that mistake :)

but this thread is about overzealous deletions. How can reporting help us there Sandy?

Yus, Frank, and the "you're having a larf" ones go in 13.47 seconds.

Which they would not have done in the not so distant past.

Context is definitely the key.
I think MNHQ has lost all meaning of it.
I do think there are far more people reporting about the silliest things and HQ just press the big red button.
And I do report trolls, I just don't think saying 'Unbelievable' is troll hunting.

waiting for 20 people to report is a big ask ... if its a really contentious thread in a high traffic area then its realistic
but in some of the sensitive topics where their are ongoing threads that dont have high volumes every day then waiting for 20 reports could take a long long time .. by which time someone could get emotionally hurt

Nagoo you are on very very thin ice....

But she's right...

Hello. Thanks for expressing your concerns.

Just for the record, we absolutely do not just delete anything that's reported - although it would definitely make for an easier life down at MNHQ!

We do always try to look at the reported post in its context - and deleting is definitely not our reflex action.

That said, if a post is reported to us and it does break our guidelines, we do (generally) have to delete it - and any others on the same thread that break the guidelines, too.

So, for example, if someone has posted, "Go away, you're a troll and your story is ridiculous", we would delete (for trollhunting - and for a personal attack). And if a dozen other people had also posted, "Yeah, unbelievable!" or something similar, those posts would probably go, too - for joining in the trollhunt.

But, of course, Chaos, if you posted, "I've just died my hair green" and someone replied, "Unbelievable!", it would have to have been a VERY heavy Gin Day at MNHQ for us to delete that. And I'd truly be astonished if we ever had.

FrankWippery, we're sorry if you feel we haven't replied to your reports. We do try very hard to reply to every mail that comes in, but we can have a look back and see if there are some from you we haven't acknowledged.

Please don't give up reporting, though - your reports (and other people's) are hugely useful and help us greatly in unearthing hairy-handed among us. The unearthing can take time, though, and we do understand that this can be frustrating. But, since our stance is always to give folks the benefit of the doubt, we do like to be sure before pressing the Eject The Hairy-Handed button.

What about reports for PAs? Where do you draw the line between being straight talking and being a twatbucket?

@BlameItOnTheCuervo

What about reports for PAs? Where do you draw the line between being straight talking and being a twatbucket?

Depends . But it really does depend - on the context.

I think if you called me a twatbucket, I'd delete you, though

Helen, I think it would be useful to understand the rationale behind the talk guidelines.
Surely you had legal advice.
Could you maybe redirect us to moderation, liability and terms of use general guidelines so we understand WHY MNHQ is so trigger happy these days?

What I mean is: what is the law and what are you scared of?

@laptopwieldingharpy

What I mean is: what is the law and what are you scared of?

Not sure entirely what you're getting at, laptopwieldingharpy. Are you saying you think we're deleting because we're scared of being sued?

I would never call you a twatbucket. I'm sure you have an immaculate vagina.

Things you never thought you'd type #34

Hi AitchEm.

Your response is clear and I think harks back to the MN I joined and its attitude then towards straight-talking.

There is an AIBU atm that imo and ime should stand. But I think the MNewBroom will be obliterating posts shirtly.

That makes me sad.

But I may be proven wrong.

Let's hope.

simple answer Helen is yes.
The guidelines did not appear out of thin air. Mumsnet is now too big as an opinion leader, or trend setter or whatever you want to call it.

I was on a thread last week which, on the surface, seemed all innocence. Someone came on to accuse some well known MNers of sockpuppeting each other (and I reported the wankers). In the end the thread was deleted. I got an email back from MNHQ which said that they knew that the two MNers who were accused of sockpuppetry were genuine, however 5 other posters on that thread were sockpuppets.

Trust nae fucker.

All you get now is

1. Dull post
2. Slight incredulity
3. Ooo this will be deleted
4. We are going to delete this thread

YOU ARE KILLING MN

soon there will be nothing but

1. Ooo I fancy a cuppa
2. Do you?
3. I had one once

AND WE WILL ALL DIE OF BOREDOM.

I think they are deleting because they don't want the site to have a bjullying bjitches reputation.

from boredom