Earlier today, Teresa Nielsen Hayden posted the guidelines she uses for moderating the comments on BoingBoing. Of course, not everyone agrees with her take-no-prisoners approach, and her post has drawn some fire. But whether you’re a fan (which I am, big time), there’s no question that Teresa’s advancing our collective understanding of online community dynamics.
If you’re grappling with an online community yourself, or if you’re just interested in learning more, plan to join Teresa at Web2Open–along with Christy Canida of Instrucables, Amy Muller of Get Satisfaction, and Kirrily Robert of Metaweb–for a juicy discussion of community dynamics. Our “Troll Whispering” session, scheduled for the afternoon of Weds, April 23, will be a great place to share your successes and challenges.
PS. For a dose of inspiration, check out Teresa’s own site, Making Light, where she uses the pretty much the same moderation system she does on BoingBoing: it’s home to some of the most thoughtful comment threads on the Web.