Democratic Underground needs volunteers to serve as moderators!

[Skinner]

Please read this message carefully -- the moderator application process has changed. Failure to properly follow instructions will disqualify you to serve as a moderator.

The current moderator term ends soon, and we're looking for volunteers to help us out for the next term. DU is bigger and busier than ever and we're looking for dedicated people who have a little extra time on their hands.

The next moderator term will last three months, from the beginning of April until the beginning of July.

Here are some things to bear in mind before you apply:

- Your political ideology is not important... We need centrists and leftists and everyone in between to serve as moderators.

- We prefer people who have been members for a while, and have made at least a few hundred posts. You must be at least 18 years old. You must have donated at least one time to Democratic Underground using your own name.

- You must be able to log on to DU regularly, and should not take any long vacations between now and the end of the term.

- We prefer people with a generally positive outlook on life, who can be fair and evenhanded, and who don't get easily frustrated. If you sign up to moderate, we expect you to stay as a moderator for the full term. You must understand that it is perfectly normal for the admins to occasionally overturn your decisions, or to make specific requests regarding the manner in which you participate on DU while you are a moderator.

- We prefer that moderators avoid highly controversial topics, or at least moderate their behavior significantly when participating in such discussions. If you have a history of rhetorically hot postings on controversial issues, we may not choose you to serve.

- If you know that you aren't very good at controlling your behavior or your emotions, or if you know that you can't be fair to a particular group of people, please do not sign up to be a moderator. There is no obligation to serve as a mod, and we won't hold it against you if you choose not to.

Here's how to volunteer:

STEP 1: FILL OUT, SIGN, AND SNAIL MAIL THE MODERATOR CONFIDENTIALITY AGREEMENT

IMPORTANT! If you mailed us the form before, you might need to mail it again. The form was updated on August 26, 2005, and we need the most recent version from all of our moderators.

The moderator confidentiality agreement is here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/forums/moderator_form.html

Double-check to make sure the page says "Updated August 26, 2005." That way you will know that you are looking at the correct form. If it doesn't say that, click reload/refresh on your browser to reload the page.

Fill it out and send it in to the address provided ASAP. We hope to receive completed forms from all applicants *before* the new moderator term begins in the beginning of April. If we do not receive your form before that date, we may not be able to give you access to the moderator forum at the beginning of the moderator term.

We will keep the moderator confidentiality agreement forms on file in our office, so once you mail us the form you should not have to send it again if you apply to serve in future terms. (This time, we promise.)

STEP 2: SEND US AN APPLICATION EMAIL WITH THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION

Send an email to [e-mail] with the word "moderator" in the subject line. By volunteering to serve as a moderator, you are giving us permission to take all necessary measures to verify your identity. Include the following information:

- Your real name

- Your forum username

- Your address

- Your telephone number

- How much time you spend on Democratic Underground

- Which forums you'd like to moderate, or would not like to moderate (if you have a preference)

- A brief statement which generally outlines your political views

- Are you taking any extended vacations during the the next three months?

- Have you read, and do you agree to follow, the Message Board Rules and the Moderator Guidelines?

- Have you filled out, signed, and mailed the Moderator Confidentiality Agreement (Updated August 26, 2005)?

If you apply but are not selected this time, please don't be offended. We typically have a fairly large number of applicants, and we obviously can't pick everyone who applies.

We hope to select a new group of moderators on April 5, 2006. There will be a free conference call for the new moderators on the following night.

Skinner
DU Admin

[stop the bleeding]

1. Changing of the Guard n/t

[newyawker99]

2. xxx

[Catherine Vincent]

3. Was there ever a time when not enough DUers volunteered to moderate?

[Skinner]

4. I don't think so.

We usually get enough. But we wouldn't mind getting more applications. If anyone is still thinking about it, they are welcome to sign up.

[Puglover]

6. Skinner....approximately how much time would you

prefer the mods be able to spend a day on DU? I'd like to try it sometime but haven't the foggiest how much time you would need.
Jeff

[Skinner]

7. It depends.

WE try to leave it up to the mods themselves. Usually, things get covered pretty well that way, with some mods online a lot, and others not so much.

If you're assigned to a slow forum, then you only have to stop by a couple times a day. But there's always something to do, and you can spend many hours here if you want to.

[TrueAmerican]

5. For the most part you have some great moderators

It's just some bad apples that sometimes ruin the rest of the barrel. Just like their are some bad police officers that smear the name of the rest of them.