[PMC] Proposed Chat Moderation Changes

[Tolgar]

Ok folks it's time to get serious about moderating chat.  The key thing here is to get public chat consistent across all our servers and forms of communication.

 

1.  Public avenues of chat need to be moderately civil.  This includes non-clan chat on the servers, general mumble chat/text and the IRC channels.  There is friendly banter, usual game-like chat "omg you killed me you suck" "lol wtf i was helping you, you bastard!" "/ban Tolgar for being Tolgar" off color stuff, things that most people already do and we're fine with.  90% of chat as it is, is already like this.

 

2.  Clan chat/msg/privately made mumble channels are where you can be a bit looser and uncouth.  Stuff that wouldn't fly at the office, the more "jokingly-abusive" banter (only as long as both parties are fine with it), stuff you wouldn't let your 10 year old read.  Things of that nature.  But only if the participants are cool with that.  IF someone new enters and they are NOT cool with it (IE total stranger), you can either stop while they are there, tone it down, get to know them and maybe they will be just like you and enjoy it.

 

Now what this isn't, is a new avenue of getting someone you don't like banned.  We log everything, we can get context from other sources.  If you are obviously abusive to someone in public chat, you will be asked to stop and if its continuous, or happens multiple different times, you will be dealt with.  If its private chat and someone has a problem, they can obviously leave that chat (if its way too weird for them), or bring it up with a moderator/admin if its directed against them and they have a problem with it.  This also isn't a way for you to aggravate someone to the point where they lash out and then get them banned.  We have the context, we have the logs, most likely both of you will be dealt with, the instigator harder, the one who lashed out, depends on what he said.

 

Now you may be thinking, Tolgar, this isn't necessary, we already do this.  Well yes and no.  P is pretty much like this already, the level of chat is pretty well set and people going off is usually unusual and alarming.  C, we've had a lot of chat issues in the past, I'd argue for C we keep the role playing in the "private chat/clan chats, off color stuff" category.

 

S is where we hit a snag, the 2 chats are reversed here, public chat is a cesspool that most people want to ignore and the private chats are where people communicate and tolerate each other.  This has to change and change quickly or no matter what we fix mechanic wise, it won't change anything server population wise.

 

If you think the above line is bullshit and I'm talking out of my ass here, you are already part of the problem and will have to be reigned in also.  These rules apply to staff as well as between staff broadcast.  With these changes, S will be more heavily chat moderated, but to keep it at the same level of the other servers/irc/mumble.  If that is impossible for some of our players to accommodate after multiple warnings or being asked to change, then it will be dealt with as any other rule breaking.

 

Stuff like this can't change overnight, so once implemented there would be a few weeks of grace period where we remind people of the rule changes and gently ask that people change, or move their discussions.

 

Feel free to add to this and come up with better wordings or clarifications, any extra situations or scenarios we should address with this. But something along these lines needs to be implemented soon. If you disagree, you either just don't want to chat moderate, which is fine, others will, or you want to keep it where it is, which is not fine, this has to change and will change.

 

Thanks.

[uni0]

Could you provide some context on what triggered you to post this? I'm on s a lot and while the chat sometimes gets dense, I don't think it's out of control or bad enough to warrant more tight moderation. There are some scenarios where players get worked up and start cursing and in some cases personal insulting, sometimes during spree killing near spawn or base camping. If that's the kind of scenario you are referring to it seems we focus more on the source of the issue rather than the outcome.

[Tolgar]

Its nothing specific, its just 2+ years of bullshit, sometimes stronger, sometimes lesser.  Time for it to end.  We dealt with C in a similar way, 80% of our staff couldn't stand being on C because of the chat and all the kids, I'd say similar for S aside from those who already play it heavily.  It's time to be consistant.

[buzzinbee]

I would be for chat to be moderated a bit more closely people can get away with a lot on the servers that they never used to and personally I think it drags the servers down. 

[kitcatbar]

I have to agree with uni0 here. While I've been on S, chat doesn't get out of hand too much. When it does, mods are quick to step in.

I'm not saying chat moderation shouldn't be a concern, but so far there seems to be a pretty good handle on it.