Lizzie Borden Moderating

Not so sweet.

[Marcia]

There were some who took exception to the sweet, nicey-nicey approach in Mary Poppins Moderating [webmasterworld.com], which is really nothing more than using tact. But how about Lizzie Borden Moderating?

Adapting the old poem, it would go something like this:

Lizzie Borden had an axe,
Gave the members forty whacks.
And when the job was nicely done,
She gave more members forty-one.

Of course, it could also be a "he" but you get the drift of it, don't you? What do you think?

[limbo]

One of my favourite forums is moderated by a bunch of quick witted, sarcastic and often rude moderators. Their complete disregard for political correctness and wholesome embrace of the 'anything goes' policy makes some new members flee for the hills, the rest of us get a good laugh, have a joke and carry on posting. I like this hardnosed chop socky style modding but I have only seen it work on that forum, which is getting a good rep because of it.

[jimbeetle]

Limbo, that sounds kind of like Don Rickles moderating. Would be a breath of fresh air.

[ncw164x]

The only time it can become frustrating is when Brett uses his machete to hack threads to death and in between time you have spend 10 minutes typing up a reply only to find the comment you was replying to has been removed and you get the login page, the good looking guy on the "ak file not found" page seems to have gone

The other end of the spectrum is the Mary Poppings approach like you mention by wrapping members up in cotton wool and treading carefully so you don't upset anyone, both ways are acceptable to a certain percentage of members.

You just have to choose what side of the fence you want to be on, wrapped up in cotton wool and fed a spoon full of sugar or someone coming at you from every angle with a machete...me personally "bring on the machete" ;)

[rogerd]

>>Limbo, that sounds kind of like Don Rickles moderating. Would be a breath of fresh air.

Haha, be careful what you ask for, you might get it. ;)

I've said it before, but perhaps it bears repeating - forum populations are self-selecting. Aggressive, sarcastic mods definitely aren't everyone's cup of tea, but some people will enjoy that kind of environment. People will gravitate to forums where they enjoy the other members and where the moderation is in synch with the members (and the forum mission). If the forum mission and TOS demand a high level of courtesy, then you will tend to cultivate a polite membership and moderators who also do their work in a courteous and unobtrusive manner.

In a wide-open, free-wheeling forum, a mod may have to be more like the bouncer in a biker bar, i.e., even bigger and meaner than the clientele - and remind people of it often. :)