http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html en-gb 30 Wed 06 Jan 2010 09:47:41 GMT+1 A feed of user comments from the page found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html?page=17#comment8 This post has been Removed Thu 01 Oct 2009 08:42:18 GMT+1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html?page=15#comment7 How do I get on to a general blog site eg entertainment/ documentaries ? Thu 24 Sep 2009 17:55:34 GMT+1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html?page=13#comment6 This post has been Removed Wed 09 Sep 2009 04:45:48 GMT+1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html?page=11#comment5 As a moderator/admin on a (very low volume) message board, I can totally empathise with having to deal with an influx of new members.Many bots and the ocasional real-person spammer were signing up on a daily rate. Members had to be manually approved and, in the cases where they slipped through, the resulting posts were... largely unpleasant.I can only imagine that a site as large as the BBC will have many more attempted signup attempts by spammers.Much as I can appreciate it being frustrating if you're trying to post on something topical/immediate, I have full sympathy for the moderation crew in this case. Trust me, that one single post that can get through unchecked is definitely not something that should show up on a BBC site about a family entertainment show. Sadly, some spam attempts are completely obscene.I don't think free-for-all posting is a valid option, much as I'd prefer it from an end-user point of view.But I have background as both a board mod and as a techie. And when a backlog reaches that extent, it's time to shut off the incoming attempts for a while. Fri 21 Nov 2008 15:15:34 GMT+1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html?page=8#comment4 Have you posted this on the messageboards? That way, the people who were actually affected will see the explanation. Fri 21 Nov 2008 14:20:43 GMT+1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html?page=6#comment3 @DStuartWe are working on ways to improve and speed up moderation, but you are right that it is difficult "to moderate a web 2.0 world".It has been suggested here and on other boards that we be more open about this, and I'm trying to be (case in point).@MLeng92I understand your frustration about us closing a board when you want to talk. The problem in this case wasn't so much just around "racist/abusive" comments as you mention. In this specific case we've had an incredible amount of *new* users signing up.When a new user signs up, we *have* to check their first couple of messages - this is called "being in pre-mod". There are two primary reasons for this:- To protect the BBC's editorial integrity- To provide a safe environment for users and protect the communityThen there is another important point to note: We publish each and every comment we receive that does not break the house rules. As a public service broadcaster, we don't throw away or delete any comments that are legitimate. Unfortunately this sometimes means moderation queues, and in the most extreme cases queues that can take up to an hour to clear.On the Strictly board on Wednesday the system was being held up mostly by new users who were still in pre-mod. We had thrown *all our resources on this, but it wasn't enough. As I explained, I had a decision between opening it up as a free-for-all (including abusive comments, spammers, and other possible problem cases) or closing it overnight while we cleared the backlog. Thu 20 Nov 2008 19:37:22 GMT+1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html?page=4#comment2 Why couldn't you switch to Reactive moderation? With that many people using the boards, surely anything untoward would have been spotted and reported pretty swiftly. Thu 20 Nov 2008 19:25:57 GMT+1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html?page=2#comment1 What's the point of having a messageboard if you close it when people want to talk? Restricting opinion is not what I hope the BBC is about.I deplore racist/abusive comments, but I'd rather be able to report them and have them swiftly removed than to have my discussion stopped so each message could be checked.Common sense please! Thu 20 Nov 2008 16:40:07 GMT+1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/11/strictly_message_board_what_ha.html?page=0#comment0 Whilst comments are a relatively quick item to moderate, this shows the problem of trying to moderate a web 2.0 world.Maybe you need to find a way of sharing the role of moderating with the public. Thu 20 Nov 2008 15:38:39 GMT+1