A forum moderator monitors and manages communication on an internet forum, including moving threads, enforcing rules, and maintaining the forum’s integrity. They may also participate in discussions and have the authority to ban users who violate rules. Standards vary and newcomers should post with caution.
A forum moderator oversees the communication activity of an Internet forum. She monitors the interchange of contributors and makes decisions about the content and direction of threads. Moving threads from one section to another to keep topics organized is also a common job for a forum moderator.
If the tone of a forum turns hostile or begins to veer in the direction of personal attacks, the forum moderator usually has the discretion to lock down the discussion to avoid heated exchanges. He may even be able to hide discussions that he deems unworthy of further discussion. Conversely, topics that he thinks deserve further consideration may be posted indefinitely by the moderator even if they get no comments.
The duties of the moderator are as diverse as the forum topics themselves. Some moderators are practically invisible; they only emerge when situations arise that don’t seem to resolve themselves. Other forum moderators are always there, ready to intercede at the slightest hint of a conversation. Moderators of public forums often have to enforce many rules of conduct and decorum, as public contributors tend to communicate without abandon, which can sometimes upset other commenters.
Private forums linked to a website or group often work a little differently. The forum moderator is likely to be familiar with the members and may be more lax in enforcing the rules if he is aware of the members’ jokes and their tone. Standards differ greatly in the forums and newcomers are advised to post with caution until they get the general feel of the forum atmosphere. Regardless of the forum topic or environment, most prohibit the sharing of illegal or copyrighted material and pornography, and many avoid swearing or using inappropriate language or images.
Moderators are sometimes encouraged to participate in discussions, especially if they have experience or advice to provide for contributing. Other forums prefer their moderators to remain totally objective and serve primarily as impartial enforcers. Occasionally a forum moderator will impersonate a contributor to steer a discussion in another direction or to offer input without fear of creating a conflict of interest.
In addition to acting as a parent or guardian of forum content, forum moderators are also responsible for maintaining the integrity of the forum in other ways. This requires knowledge of HTML and the ability to move, merge, add and delete text, graphics and links. Contributors often ask moderators to assist them with technical problems with accessing the site and posting.
The additional duties of a forum moderator may include moving threads to more appropriate sections, closing or locking threads based on waning interest or lack of recent activity, editing posts for clarity or content, and deleting threads. The deletion of the thread can be temporary or permanent, depending on the wishes of the forum moderator.
If an offending contributor refuses to cease unacceptable behavior, the forum moderator usually has the discretion to ban the user. If the offender continues to post and circumvents the ban, the moderator can choose to access the user’s IP address. This allows the moderator to ban by address instead of banning the user by name or email address.
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