Could someone please explain the role and power of a Moderator? Is it possible / ethical for a Moderator to amend posts retrospectively without any trace that this has been done? I have noticed that this has happened several times somewhere not unknown to most of us. Surely if the post is being amended for any reason then the poster ought to be aware why the Moderator has changed it and if the Moderator is altering a personal post then again it should be evident that it has changed since it was originally posted. Any thoughts?
Hi CTNana, when a Mod edits a post it will how up at the bottom of the post, just like when a poster edits their message. Unless a Mod enters a reason why they edited a post, you will just see a time and who did the editing. But Mods should add reasons for editing someone elses posts. But as far as I am aware, an edit by a Mod should be evident by a automatic time idicator as shown below. For example As to the reasons why a Mod would edit someone else's posts: 1) it has broken a forum rule on language, offensive to one or more members, or things of a similar vein 2) to correct a typo in the title. Though spelling mistakes etc are generally left for the poster to correct themselves if they wish to do so, Mods will occassionally correct spellings in thread titles so that it's easier to search for in the future. 3) Fixing hyper-links. Sometimes a link may become broken I hope that answers you question CTNana. Was there something specific that's occurred here? If you like, you could PM me.
No Kyt not here, somewhere not far away but darker. I thought I had noticed it previously but couldn't be sure. Now I know I can. There is definitely no indication that the post has been amended by anyone and it just seemed to me that it was wrong. Sorry if that scared all of you guys!!!
S'alright CTNana, we weren't scared. We like to be transparent. I agree though that if a Mod edits a post then it should always be apparant. I did forget to point out that entire posts maybe removed, with no indication that they were ever there. But this only occurs for spam posts, if a member requests it (for example for a double post or an acceptable error), or if a member has been particularly offensive. So far the latter has only occurred here for a particular nasty piece of work (and I'm sure you can guess who CTNana). What's happened on the dark side just seems like bad form.
On this site if a moderator edits a post it will always display the message kyt has shown, if the person who created the post edits it within 15 minutes it wont show anything, simply as you may have just been correcting spelling or adding something, more than 15 minutes it will display an edited by and when message. You can however turn that option off in the admin panel and your right its turned off somewhere else
Errr, just one point Lee. The edit line is displayed after about 3 or 4 minutes. Not a problem as most people know that I have atrocious spelling and will always have to go back to correct it.
I have short term memory loss! What was the question? Lee with reference to the time lag (don't know how to do multiple quotes in one reply!), I don't know how quickly the post was changed because I only look there every now and again. I only have my email notification of the reply which is different to what it now says (admittedly not substantially on this occasion).
It does seem like someone is playing silly buggers over there. However, it may just be a case of what Lee was saying. It could be that the original poster went back and edited their own post within the time limit, so no "edited" line will appear on the message, but you got the original message in the email.
it may be that I changed it here to a shorter time, I just remember the default is 15 minutes when its switched on.
And of cause when I am in a particular petulant mood I start altering peoples pots in the barracks only to praise myself. Wonderful boost to the ego :> And if Kyt annoys me he gets his avi changed. But seriously, if a post is offensive then it will be deleted to the point no evidence is left of it. However if someone has inadvertantly used an offensive word/phrase outside of context then a Mod may go in and edit it. What is happening elsewhere is a flagrant breech of the Moderator code of conduct. We will always (so long as I remember) post a reason in the editing system as to why we have done so.
Yes, and this is why Kitty is known as the Mad Gardner - you never know where your shrubs will end up :becky:
And I suppose a Moderator, or Lee, may have to act fast if there was a chance of the poster or site owners getting sued, or even the site being closed down by the courts. There was a scare on the Great War Forum a while back, when there was heated debate about an issue currently in the courts (the shot-at-dawn-pardoning issue). So while the subject ought to have been fair play to debate, some people with entrenched views and access to heavyweight lawyers threatened legal action, so the site owner had to delete entire threads on the issue, for the protection of the site.
Unlike the usual Mod/Admin duties, the issue of action due to current court cases is a tricky one. Though it is very rare, I think the yardstick would/should be what is already in the public domain. So if a reputable news service (and so, not just any old website) has reported on an issue, then I think we should be able to report it too. However, it then gets tricky if people start discussing an issue and use evidence that is not in the public domain. But Members do have to agree to the terms and conditions when registering, and accept that "All messages express the views of the author" and not those of the owners and/or administrators.
