So I want to disclaim before I go into this idea, that I am not in anyway suggestion myself. I am too freaking busy. Haha.
I really feel based on the history of mernetwork, that it would be beneficial to have some mods in addition to the two admins Mal and Iona. I think given that the change over for the site is happening, now might be a good time to chat about it and have some ideas flowing.
Before we get started, I want to say my ideas and opinions in no way are intended to insult Mal and Iona, or anything crazy like that. You guys work your asses off and we know that
Okay, so I feel for several reasons we should have some mods in the next few months. Here are my reasons why:
1. While Iona and Mal have been awesome, it can be tricky to get ahold of them sometimes when issues arise on the site. Mal does school full time and Iona has other things that can sometimes keep her from the site. There have been instances where the forum has sort of been worked into a frenzy and we've had trouble getting ahold of people, or the Admin we got ahold of didn't have the ability to address the issue. (e.g. the hacking etc) Having a few other mods who have some basic abilities could go a long way to a) issue reports if something has happened to the site, b) lock or freeze a thread if drama has gotten out of control c) approve reviews if they've piled up d) post to the FB page updated to the community, (I do this a lot but I work a full time job and mermaid and health stuff so a lot of times my phone blows up anytime there's an error message on the forum)
and e) back up the forum/posts if need be.
2. I think we can expect a surge of new members. There are several big things about to happen in the media etc that are going to continue putting merfolk in the spotlight. This time last year we got a lot of new members due to the TLC bit airing and with several well known musicians putting our mer-videos soon, with the two mermaid movies coming out, and the mer-tv shows and books climbing the charts, I think we can expect new members. I have seen on other forums there is one mod dedicated to welcoming new people. That mod would welcome each new member in their intro post, link them to the rules, link them to the FAq etc. I know Iona tries to PM people this when they first get on but a lot of times I think a two pronged approach works well. We've had some complaints recently about newbs joining and quasi spamming the forum with repeat posts simply because they don't know how to use it yet. I think we can expect that to increase without a plan.
3. More mods/admins = less bias more democracy and quicker resolutions. While Iona and Mal always strive to be unbiased it can often take a very long time because of their opposing schedules for Iona to brief Mal on an issue and determine a result for how to handle drama or something else. I think if there were other mods, they could converse with 1 of the admins and have a vote on what to do. I have a more detailed suggestion for this down below based on what I've seen on other sites.
4. Growth. Honestly. It's crazy we got this far for this long only having 2 people, and speaking from a behind the scenes perspective as someone running between the two admins when issues arise, even though the community may not see it all because so much hard work is spent to handle it, it's still only two people. No one person should get stuck with the brunt of the load and I know as Iona tends to be on the forum more she usually has to handle certain issues all by herself because of timing. While in other instances, she can't do a darn thing and has to wait for Mal. Some issues just wont wait for people to be ready. And as we grow I think we've seen a lot of examples of that in the last year.
So here's what I am suggesting:
I think there should be several types of mods. There should be an application process. The applications are PMed directly to Iona/Mal and not posted publicly. (I have suggestions for what should be on an application, but perhaps if the community thinks this is something we want to try then we can discuss that). Mod terms would be for a year, and then revisited. 3 month probation where they can be demoted back to normal member if an issue arises. You tailor the applications so you know you're getting people who can truly act unbiased
The mod duties I think should be:
IT Mod- there needs to be a back up person for when the site gets hacked or something goes wacky with the code, or the add ons bust or whatever. Now, we may not actually *get* someone like that right away. People always offer to help but when you get them in there very often they have little experience in what your dealing with. A clear application will help the current admins determine if anyone has experience with the forum software etc. I understand that this particular mod would need to be chosen with great care and their abilities monitored so they couldnt just get mad one day and delete the whole place. But I do really really feel we need someone. I have watched Iona nearly kill herself spending days trying to fix stuff in a panic over her head because Mal is busy with school and the forum is freaking out over no access.
Newb Mod- this person's job would be to do as I suggested earlier, they could manage those PMs with the newbs, give them the appropriate links, and give them gentle nudges if they mess up in their first few posts (instead of the whole community jumping down a newbs throat). I also know the admins keeps track of IPs of people who have been banned (there aren't many people banned from the site or suspended) and they could always double check IPs if something looks suspicious. They could also check to be sure no one is trying to pretend to be someone else (we had someone try to imitate mermaid Kylee for a while, and the email they used to register was one letter off from hers).
Clean Up Mod- a person's whose job is just to go around and clean up the boards! Move threads and posts to where they need to be. Redirect people to ontopic threads, delete any spam that may accidentally slip through, rename titles of threads to say "mature content" if needed etc.
Behaviour Mod- So this one is sorta tricky. As the admins may feel they're the only ones to handle it. But it might be easy to have one person who keeps track of any current drama/issue. Then they can present it to the group of admins/mods in order to make a decision on what should be done about it. This person could also hand out warnings in threads and redirects to the rules, but they wouldn't be able to just go in and ban people or delete stuff etc. They'd still have to bring it to the group. It's not necessary I think like the other ones, but again, when the two admins can't be reached or can't at that moment help it does make a big difference.
Add Mod- If we do decide to go the route of having an ad system in place for that stuff it's good to have just one person whose job is to oversee it. Just for sanity sake.
edit: Dottie inspired me: A recruitment mod: someone who posts all over the web and tracks mers down and invites them to contribute to the forum!
These are just *my* ideas of what I see could be used after using the site as obsessively as I do
I believe ALL mods should have the ability to freeze a thread/lock a thread temporarily if there's an issue until an admin can review it. I also think that the mods should have separate mod accounts and that there is no reason for the community to know exactly who was chosen, they can known them by their mod name. (this is to avoid threats, stalking, or messaging on personal accounts/FB when issues arise of an individual who is just doing their job). This is pretty standard on many forum sites. Finally, there should be an admin board that only admins/mods can see. That way when there are issues on the site they can post a thread there and the group can discuss it. If there is drama then the group can decide on the best course of action. It's also a good way to keep track of potential drama and have things backed up. I worked on another forum for about 5 years prior to joining mernetwork and when they put this system in place it worked wonders. It was a huge positive change.
The mods would only have the power that people feel they should have. No ability like I said, to just come in and wipe stuff out or ban people.
So in closing, I'd like this thread to be about discussion of the idea, and not "I want to be a mod" or "make this person a mod" or whatever.
Questions for you:
1. Do you think mods would benefit the site? why/why not?
2. What roles and responsibilities do you think mods could/should have?
3. What would be your biggest concerns?
I really hope you'll consider my idea. I don't want us to brush it off because of one worry or two when we can create active plans to manage those concerns
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Originally Posted by AniaR
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