Does this site have any protection against abuse of power by moderators? Is there a way we can report their misconducts? For example, for maliciously deleting comments.
10
-
7$\begingroup$ BTW, across the Stack Exchange network, comments are for temporary information, primarily intended to help clarify and improve questions and answers. They may be deleted at any time. If you wish to post information on a more permanent basis, put it in an answer or a question. $\endgroup$– PM 2RingCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 5:51
-
$\begingroup$ @PM2Ring Yes, I'm aware of that. It was only an example. I'm talking about actions with malicious intentions. $\endgroup$– WoodCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:03
-
3$\begingroup$ In that case, I suggest you use a different example. $\endgroup$– PM 2RingCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:13
-
1$\begingroup$ @PM2Ring Are you implying that it's impossible to maliciously delete someone else's comment? $\endgroup$– WoodCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:17
-
$\begingroup$ It's possible to selectively delete comments in thread in a way that gives a distorted impression of the conversation to future readers. However, I've never seen a mod do that. $\endgroup$– PM 2RingCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:25
-
1$\begingroup$ When mods delete comments they generally delete them in bulk. Individual comments are only deleted if they're rude, etc. Mods often move comment threads into chat, but that can only be done once per question or answer, subsequent comments cannot be easily moved to the chatroom, so mods tend to delete them if they get out of hand. $\endgroup$– PM 2RingCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:25
-
1$\begingroup$ @PM2Ring What they "generally do" and examples of appropriate deletions are all irrelevant. You can't argue that it's impossible to do X by giving examples of "not X". $\endgroup$– WoodCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:29
-
1$\begingroup$ I didn't say it's impossible, just that I've never witnessed it. I agree that it can be annoying to have comments deleted. OTOH, we shouldn't expect comments to be anything but temporary (and we should try to delete our comments once they've served their purpose). $\endgroup$– PM 2RingCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:37
-
3$\begingroup$ Comments are deleted all the time, and for good reason: they’re not meant to be permanent in the first place. I don’t expect any of my comments to stay up for any significant amount of time. If I wanted something permanent, I wouldn’t have posted a comment at all. $\endgroup$– knzhouCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 10:18
-
$\begingroup$ Given your limited number of questions and answers on the main site (and other SE sites as well), it is perhaps not surprising that you are not fully in tune with the general SE mechanics. Clearly something has happened that you don't like (and don't want to point out), and you don'[t like John's answer below. Yet, it is the correct answer. $\endgroup$– Jon CusterCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 19:48
Add a comment
|
1 Answer
$\begingroup$
$\endgroup$
18
See the question on the SE meta: What recourse do I have if I believe a moderator has abused their privileges?
Alternatively for a specific issue see: How do I dispute a moderator's action?
However bear in mind that the physics site runs on good will. People donate their time and expertise for free in the belief that doing so makes the world a better place. The same applies to the moderators. They are not paid for the time and effort they put in. It is exceedingly unlikely a moderator has acted for any reason other than they genuinely believe it is in the best interests of the site.
If you believe a moderator shouldn't have acted in the way they did then post a polite message here explaining the problem and you'll receive polite answers. There is no guarantee that the answers will be to your liking, but at least you'll know exactly why the moderators acted as they did.
answered Jul 9, 2019 at 5:34
-
5$\begingroup$ Isn't this extremely naive, though? Running a Q&A website under the assumption that people won't abuse their powers with malicious intentions makes no sense to me. "People donate their time and expertise for free" -- it only takes one mouse click to do harm to the website. "They are not paid for the time and effort they put in" -- me neither, and I don't see how this helps your argument. On the contrary, usually a paid employee of the Stack Exchange network is more trustworthy than an anonymous community-elected moderator. $\endgroup$– WoodCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 7:56
-
8$\begingroup$ @Wood I know all the moderators. We've never met in person but we chat in the chat room and have been doing so for years. They are all people who genuinely believe that the effort they put into moderating makes the world a better place. If you think they're being malicious it just means you haven't understood why they acted as they did. In that case just ask them. They are nice people. $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:02
-
3$\begingroup$ If they're all truly well-intentioned, then surely they won't have a problem with being accountable for their actions. And your opinion on how wonderful and nice people you think they are is actually irrelevant. Even if true, you can't possibly guarantee that it will always be like that. Also, sounds a lot like what someone would say if they wanted to appease the moderators or wanted to become one, so it's hard to take it for granted, even if you're being completely honest. $\endgroup$– WoodCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:34
-
$\begingroup$ Can I ask you to rephrase or remove the third paragraph? To me, it seems off-topic. The rest of the answer is perfect. $\endgroup$– WoodCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:37
-
2$\begingroup$ @Wood you haven't asked the moderators to account for their actions. If you ask them to account for their actions then barring a few special cases such as suspensions they won't have a problem with being accountable for their actions. $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 9, 2019 at 8:46
-
3$\begingroup$ @Wood Appeasing moderators doesn't contribute to your ability to become a moderator at all, nor would it really have an effect on high-rep users. The moderators are elected by the community; not by other moderators. More importantly, we just held an election that ended May 7th. John did not put himself in the running. If he wanted to moderate, or anything like that, he could have just nominated himself and almost definitely would have been elected. To me, it sounds like what someone would say if they trust the moderation team. $\endgroup$– JMacCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 11:37
-
3$\begingroup$ @Wood We can speculate at lengths about hypotheticals as long as no concrete example is provided, if even from another sister site. You have enough rep. to go to chat and sort any specific issue in a constructive way, or if you feel this applies to more than PSE you might take it to the mother Meta, but right now continuing with innuendos is not terribly useful IMO. $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 9, 2019 at 13:23
-
3$\begingroup$ @ZeroTheHero An example would be extremely counter-productive. People would simply focus on trying to defend the moderator on that particular instance instead of looking at the big picture: moderators are not saints. "You have enough rep. to go to chat and sort any specific issue in a constructive way, or if you feel this applies to more than PSE you might take it to the mother Meta" -- Then post this as an answer. Oh, wait... you can't! The question was closed... by a moderator! :) $\endgroup$– WoodCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 15:48
-
1$\begingroup$ @JMac Are you kidding? I could list the many ways in which you can get ahead by appeasing the moderators, but comments are restricted to 600 characters. On the other hand, can you think of any personal advantage of confronting the moderation team and demanding accountability from them? $\endgroup$– WoodCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 15:54
-
$\begingroup$ @Wood you seem to be occupying an uneasy middle ground where it is unclear whether you are asking a purely theoretical question about the checks and balances on moderatorial power or whether you have been offended by a moderator and you wish to complain about it. Your last comment (the one immediately above this) strongly suggests the latter. If so, perhaps you could make clear what precisely you want to complain about. As long as you keep it polite there will be no comeback on you apart from the downvotes from those who disagree with you. $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 9, 2019 at 16:03
-
2$\begingroup$ @JohnRennie My question is as it is. I think it's pretty clear. If, for some strange reason, you still don't understand, it's not about a specific instance of abuse, simply because I never offered one. I want to know if there's a way to report moderators for abuse of power. From lack of a positive answer, I'm assuming the answer is "no, moderators are immune to scrutiny by the community, though their actions can be reversed by other moderators". I don't know how to make it clearer than this. Also, from the comments here, I get a sense that there's a consensus that this is the way it should be. $\endgroup$– WoodCommented Jul 9, 2019 at 16:13
-
6$\begingroup$ @Wood The two links I gave explain how moderators can be held to account. What more is there to say? $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 9, 2019 at 16:15
-
4$\begingroup$ @Wood you just don't get it, do you? The point of my third paragraph is that this site works because people are nice to each other. We all try to get along. Yet you feel it appropriate to accuse me of being obsequious. $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 9, 2019 at 16:48
-
4$\begingroup$ @Wood You do realize that typing up an answer and engaging in a discussion are part of trying to help, right? $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 9, 2019 at 18:45
-
1$\begingroup$ @Wood I totally agree with you. A moderator has deleted a meta question. Not only has this X moderator (and also some users) been offensive and disrespectful to me, but they even want to be right in any case even if they are wrong. $\endgroup$ Commented Aug 6, 2019 at 21:30