ScubaBoard Censorship

[idocsteve]

I think people have to keep in mind that ScubaBoard is a private entity, controlled by it Terms of Service which every member agreed to when they created their account. Despite what many people think, ScubaBoard is NOT subject to the First Amendment when it comes to member having any kind of "right" to post their thoughts.

ScubaBoard does what they feel, in their own opinion, is best for them and their members. As it is with any private organization. It is just they way it is and members have a few options: deal with it, complain about it through the proper channels, or leave. It really is that simple. You can always leave and start your own forum that conforms to your opinions.

The question was in regard to whether or not the thread was removed because of a request by a sponsor who donates money to the board. That's is a good question, and I don't see it as one of those typical whiny complaints which are usually along the lines of "The moderator removed my post!" or "Where did that thread go that I was reading I didn't see anything wrong with it!".

If a moderating team of an internet board is influenced by the ones who spend, and therefore biased in terms of what stays and what goes; well that's a legitimate concern of the members who of course can post wherever they want. That much said, I don't see any evidence of that on ScubaBoard whatsoever.

 

[Scott L]

Apparently not if NWG is correct:




Both. Some mfr's representatives on SB are not aware that they can remove posts in their specific forum so they ask us.

That's the key. Thanks!

 

[Scott L]

I think people have to keep in mind that ScubaBoard is a private entity, controlled by it Terms of Service which every member agreed to when they created their account. Despite what many people think, ScubaBoard is NOT subject to the First Amendment when it comes to member having any kind of "right" to post their thoughts.

ScubaBoard does what they feel, in their own opinion, is best for them and their members. As it is with any private organization. It is just they way it is and members have a few options: deal with it, complain about it through the proper channels, or leave. It really is that simple. You can always leave and start your own forum that conforms to your opinions.

Rather well spoken but policy like most all other things is a tug & pull process. Has anyone violated the proper channels that you speak of yet? A curious statement from one member to all others...

 

[Scott L]

Apparently not according to NWG's post in that thread:

Isn't Dive Matrix a proponent of UTD diving?

Fair enough. The OP's choice of words and rather spirited reputation probaly had more to do with the moderator's actions than the subject matter. If a thread were to have been started more civilly do you suspect it would have remained in the DIR forum?

 

[The Chairman]

The question was in regard to whether or not the thread was removed because of a request by a sponsor who donates money to the board.

Force Fins has never (to my knowledge) donated money to ScubaBoard. They have not placed and ad and I don't think they have ever Gone Red. Even if they have, they would soon find that we are harder on our advertisers than on the average user. Just ask any advertiser.

Even then, I have divided ScubaBoard into two distinct entities for this very reason. The Mod Squad has zilch to do with advertising and marketing, and the marketing arm is not allowed to moderate. Is it perfect? No, but it's the best I could come up with.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

I was informed that a post placed in a manufacturer section must be "respectful". I made a few posts that were determined to not be "respectful" and my posts were deleted and I was informed of the reason. I was previously unaware of this requirement.

I have absolutely no problem with this guideline, but people should be imformed that the material that appears within the manufacturer section is more heavily "moderated".

In general, I have very few complaints about the moderation on the remainder of the board. Sometimes the moderation is slightly more stringent than I might do, but the moderators have a big responsibility to ensure that the tone of all threads meets the boards guidelines. Only once have I complained that I thought some particularly "ugly" posts be deleted. I never even followed up to see if my complaints were determined to be valid.

 

[The Chairman]

Rather well spoken but policy like most all other things is a tug & pull process. Has anyone violated the proper channels that you speak of yet? A curious statement from one member to all others...

Yeah, I make it really hard to reach the TOP quickly.

If you feel that a moderation is in error or that a moderator is not acting in the best interest of ScubaBoard, please drop me a line at Abuse@ScubaBoard.com.

If a post/thread/PM needs moderation, please drop us a line at Support@ScubaBoard.com or simply hit the

bad post button in the bottom left of every post. Please give us a reason as to why you are reporting it as well as any background we might need.

 

[diversteve]

Fair enough. The OP's choice of words and rather spirited reputation probaly had more to do with the moderator's actions than the subject matter. If a thread were to have been started more civilly do you suspect it would have remained in the DIR forum?

I don't know enough about DIR to answer that question. We have a DIR Mod - Lamont - who decides what is and is not "DIR" in the DIR specific forums. He would've been the one to have moved the thread from there - I PM'd him about it when it was reported.

 

[Cave Diver]

If a moderating team of an internet board is influenced by the ones who spend, and therefore biased in terms of what stays and what goes; well that's a legitimate concern of the members who of course can post wherever they want. That much said, I don't see any evidence of that on ScubaBoard whatsoever.

If you're a sponsor, that just means you're paying us to abuse you.

Seriously though, I have never seen any moderation that's been motivated by advertisers or sponsors wishes. ~95% of our actions are based off of reported posts by users for ToS violations. The remaining 5% are things we just happen to stumble upon on our own.

 

[Scott L]

If you feel that a moderation is in error or that a moderator is not acting in the best interest of ScubaBoard, please drop me a line at Abuse@ScubaBoard.com.

If a post/thread/PM needs moderation, please drop us a line at Support@ScubaBoard.com or simply hit the

bad post button in the bottom left of every post. Please give us a reason as to why you are reporting it as well as any background we might need.

Thanks. I am not particularily hard to please and usually spend hours on-line with SB without witnessing an ill-advised post but will remember your advise.

How you guys keep 130K members and the vast array of manufactures and organizations within the scuba diving world happy should be the subject of a Harvard Business School case study in the future.