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View Full Version : What is the criteria for appointing Moderators ??



kharub
February 5th, 2007, 02:13 AM
To begin with I would like to clarify - I have no issues whatsoever with any moderator or administrator ... none whatsoever

I am very interested in knowing what are the criteria for selecting a moderator or an administrator ??

and who makes the decision ??

Is it a closed door selection carried out by a certain group of people who choose people from among their known and trusted ??

I would also like to know the names of all Moderators + Administrators here on Jatland ...

satyeshwar
February 5th, 2007, 02:30 AM
Here is a link to all the editors:
http://www.jatland.com/forums/showgroups.php

Selection of a new moderator is a strictly closed door process. We look for many qualities in the person before making our decision. Typically they aren't involved in any controversies in the past and will likely keep their cool in the future, even if they are blamed by members on trivial issues! Above everything else, we look for a person to be unbiased.

-Satyeshwar

shobhitdeshwal
February 5th, 2007, 11:17 AM
Above everything else, we look for a person to be unbiased.

-Satyeshwar

Dear Satyeshwar,

Though I too don't have any issues with any moderator on this site... yet!! I have been witnessing cases of partiality and biasing in the past!! How do the moderators keep their personal equations with members aside while acting as a member of the core moderating group? Humans are expected to make mistakes in verdicts!! Who keeps a check? And what makes the moderators repeal a verdict? does the voice of a normal member stands heard or not?

Cheers!!

Shobhit Deshwal.

satyeshwar
February 5th, 2007, 11:38 AM
If you find moderators making mistakes, use the contact us form. This will bring it to the attention of other moderators who will then review the actions of that moderator (and we have repealed verdicts in the past!). However, this does NOT mean that every time a member accuses a moderator of wrong-doing, that we take action against him/her. We make our own collective decision free of bias.

kharub
February 5th, 2007, 07:45 PM
Why is it a closed door process ?? - A closed door process can lead a Cartel ruling Jatland (not that I think this is the present case, but is for sure a future possibility) just like a Communist Party Politburo

And who are the people involved in that process and why are those particular people involved ??

ndahiya
February 6th, 2007, 09:40 AM
Why is it a closed door process ?? - A closed door process can lead a Cartel ruling Jatland (not that I think this is the present case, but is for sure a future possibility) just like a Communist Party Politburo

And who are the people involved in that process and why are those particular people involved ??

My 2 cents... Its closed door to the extent it is not a popularity contest, or a democracy. We have experimented with a poll many years ago and broadly stuck to the mandate. But in hindsight, the process was not really helpful. A domacratic process leads to its own issues - for eg, an implicit division into "camps".

As far as I can recall, in case of almost every mod, we have requested them to take on the added responsibility. It is not a "reward", and all the mods can attest to that. :)

That said, the process is not quite as abrupt as you might think. As you would have noticed, mods keep changing depending on availability. The existing mods discuss potential candidates privately (admin forum etc), almost always before the person even knows that he/she is being considered. No one individual makes the decision on his/her own. For eg, in more than one case, I did not know too much about the person beforehand, but other mods thoughts it made sense.

The public nature of the forum automatically means a sharp light is on all mods, which helps provide a self check. The senior mods also help the newer ones "calibrate" their responses to ensure consistency. Without going into too much detail, let me say that mod actions can and are often discussed by other mods.

In any conflict situation, one party would have a tendency to feel offended or unfairly treated. The mods try to be consistent and fair, and sometimes, at the margin, they could have decided differently. That is the nature of the beast, so lets get on with it.