Yesterday, I spoke to a group of moderators at Australian National University. My talk centered around the nasty things that people say to community managers and moderators and my strategy for dealing with them. It was really lighthearted with many funny stories featuring real things that people have said to me.
Though funny to discuss, it is a real thing that happens and a point of stress for those who work in this space. Those funny stories served as the narrative for the practical lessons that I have learned over the years. Some of which I’ll write about soon. I also identified common themes that exist within abusive messages, such as negotiation and bargaining, threats, accusations of bias, accusations of corruption and comparisons to Hitler, the Nazis, Stalin, etc.
If you’ve been been moderating for a while, I thought you might enjoy having a look at the slide deck, if only for the entertainment value. I purposefully skipped over the types of things you need to report to authorities, like specific threats to your well being, and stuck with things people try to say to make you feel lesser or to intimidate you in doing what they want.
There are some (partially censored) vulgarities in the slides, so be forewarned. Beyond that, I hope that give you a laugh and help you to know that you aren’t alone.
Hahahahaha! I like the Patrick’s boss photo hahaha.
I have a customer/user who told me “the next time I see your name, I hope it is on an obituary,” and for various reasons I decided not to ban him but handled it another way which seems to have been effective. He had also threatened to make a social media campaign attacking my website but sadly never did. The marketing effect would have helped me no end.
I especially enjoyed the positive comments. I think there is a positive lesson there that there is a good reason to maintain the correct level of moderation (as a dictator of course), to protect the general community.
Nice slides, thanks.
Thanks Sandy. I’m glad that you enjoyed it.
Sorry you had to deal with this person, but you’re right, there is a lot to take from the positive remarks. It’s important not to lose sight of the big picture.
Thanks again,
Patrick
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