Why bloggers should apply to be a DU mod.

[brainshrub]

This is for those of you following my DU Journal: Brainshrub - Best. Journal. Ever! (Tips for political bloggers.)

I want to encourage all serious bloggers to consider volunteering as a moderator for DU.

There are three events that were pivotal to how I write for my own blog:

1) I used to be a moderator for DU.
2) Three weeks in a ditch in Texas.
3) A conversation I had with EarlG in September of 2005

I will talk about #2 and #3 some other time, but for now I want to discuss what it is like to moderate for DU - and why the experience is valuable for up-and-coming bloggers.

Being a DU Mod will give you a birds-eye view to the progressive movement in a way that simply can't be explained.

You will learn what causes flame-wars, and how to handle them without getting drawn in.
You will learn how to deal with trolls. (And see how useless trolling is.)
You will make friends with other bloggers, and they will give you sage advice.
You will learn what kind of writing piques peoples interest, and what is counter-productive.

But most importantly, you will learn that what you write is *gasp* read by people! I know that sounds obvious, but so often bloggers (And DUers) forget that the person you are talking to has feelings. Until you have to deal with hurt and offended people one-on-one, you don't understand what effect your writing has on other people.

You will also learn that, at the end of the day, DU is not the be-all-end-all of the Liberal blogosphere. No matter how intense a conversation is to you, within 48 hours, most people will have forgotten about it.

Yet, conversely, you will also learn that while threads may die - your online reputation is has a tremendous influence on how people respond to your writing.

If anything, being a DU mod will make you a more considerate, and honest, writer because you will get a glimpse of the long-term effect that your writing has on others.

It is my opinion that all bloggers should spend a few months modding their favorite forums. You will only gain from the experience.

Peace,

Paul -V-
www.brainshrub.com

ON EDIT: Past or present mods, please feel free to weigh in here about what you have learned.

[NMDemDist2]

1. well crap brainshrub. I want to mod again but really don't care to blog

:cry:

so that leaves me out huh???

:evilgrin:

:hi:

[brainshrub]

2. You can still mod.

It's just that the experience is extra-valuable for bloggers.

What did you learn about DU when you were a mod?

P.S. (How have you been?)

[NMDemDist2]

5. what did I learn about DU as a mod? hmmm

there was such a range of people, attitudes and civility at DU that I never realized.

I learned about all the neat little forums that I still visit regularly today like Environment/Energy and the Writing Group.

I learned a lot about civil rights, human rights and discrimination listening to my fellow mods speak about what it was like being "black/gay/transgender/southern/female/hispanic/physically challenged." It really opened my eyes how insidious the discrimination is in our society and how hurtful the language can be.

I learned that the Admins ROCK! they are thoughtful, intelligent, caring people who truly love this site and the people on it.

I learned that being a mod is HARD WORK and to do it right is time consuming!

I learned that 99.5% of freeper trolls are complete idiots and that 0.5% really must not have a life if they are willing to commit so much time "playing a liberal on DU" just so they can make the GRAND EXIT that most people don't even notice :rofl:

I learned you can enter a flame war with logic and love and usually get it to calm down and that not taking the bait is the best offense :evilgrin:

I learned to use the "Alert" key, which I had never done before. I don't go around looking for things to alert on, but now I don't hesitate to use it when I see egregious behavior.

I learned not to alert every bloody post that pisses me off or hits my hot buttons (see the two examples above for the alternatives hehe) cuz it doesn't help the post and it really pisses off the mods when you nag on your favorite "pet peeve."

I learned that just because you're a die hard lefty Democrat doesn't mean you're not a disruptive PITA



and, I'm doing fine, thanks for asking! :hi:

[brainshrub]

7. Yeah, the "Grand Exits" are hillarious.

DU is so huge that I could make a "Grand Exit" myself, and, if anyone noticed, most DUers would be scratching their heads thinking to themselves:

"Who the heck is that Brainshrub character? Oops, never mind, he's been tombstoned. I guess I'll go answer that poll in the Lounge about how much I love Taco Bell."

And that would be the end of it.

Yes, the "Alert" button is a wonderful thing.

ON EDIT: The only people who do notice are the mods, and they do nothing but laugh about it. Sometimes they will let a troll post because they know a grand exit is coming, then they take bets as to when the troll will do it.

Yes, trolls are that pathetic.

[NMDemDist2]

9. I'd remember you cuz of the days in the ditch when Katrina hit

on top of 2 of 3 admins being gone, 2/3 of the mods were away for the weekend too and then you dropped the bombshell of the missing little girl whose folks were with Cindy

what a week that was........... searching for DUers in the path, refreshing their "recent posts" hoping they'd surface and the joy and relief when they did, watching the pictures on TV in horror

whew!

[brainshrub]

11. Oi that was a weird week!

And the Spell family has not forgotten all the help DU gave them in that crisis.

It's a pity those threads needed to be deleted. (For good reason, because they gave personal information.)

For three days I was a one-man relay team, co-ordinating people with information. I hope I never have to do that again.

[enigmatic]

3. You were a great mod

And you have a great blog, my friend:)

[patdem]

4. brainshrub, my experience was a little different..seems I was a mod

when we had a couple(?) infiltrators as mods also, and they were so much more vocal than most other mods, though I will tell you that the 'regular' mods were WONDERFUL! and they often short circuited the phony 'outrage' of the infiltrators. But it really sort of made me angry and I even wrote a piece in the lounge and was banned for a short period, but obviously Skinner got me back. I LOVE DU and encourage ALL HONEST DUers to be Mods...It truly will change your view of DU...I MUST say I love DU EVEN more since those usurpers were uncovered!

[brainshrub]

6. Infiltrating, disrupting and trolling is totally useless

And yet, people still do it.

I'm not just talking about conservative trolls, but Liberal ones as well who frequent Republican sites. It's such an immature waste of time. Frankly, I think it's a sign that the individual is sexually frustrated and needs a more constructive outlet.

Trolling, disrupting or infiltrating doesn't make anyone think or change minds. All it does is confirm the worst in what the other person thinks about your beliefs.

I view trolls the same way I view people who sell network marketing schemes.

[sandnsea]

14. Trolls are sexually frustrated

:rofl:

I'm gonna remember that one!

Perhaps I should sign up for some sort of sex toy affiliate program and then post toys as a suggestion for a more constructive outlet, and make a little profit too!

[brainshrub]

16. Sounds like a great idea!

What do you want to call the business?

Toys for Trolls?

[Catherine Vincent]

8. I'll never apply to become a moderator because there are some

confidentiality that you have to keep and I'm not good at that. ;-)

[yardwork]

10. I also loved being a mod!

I was a mod for one term about a year ago (I remember that the Pope died during my mod term).

I learned that DU mods work incredibly hard! I never had time to read DU or post for fun during my mod term. It was work work work - but it was also a lot of fun. The other mods and the three administrators are wonderful.

This is a great board, and the admins and mods are the main reason for that. They keep things running smoothly and let the voices of tens of thousands of people speak in an environment of respect. That is a remarkable achievement.

[brainshrub]

12. I found that behavior I used to think was funny as a regular user

quickly got annoying as a mod.

[Missy Vixen]

13. I'm hoping to serve again

In the meantime, this is what I learned: I truly enjoyed the other mods. They're tremendous people. Skinner, EarlG and Elad work exceedingly hard and are very, very patient when they probably would rather not be sometimes.

There are 80,000+ really outstanding people on DU. The small fraction that aren't? They're everywhere. We deal with them IRL, too.

You're right about the writing stuff. It's easy to forget that there are flesh and blood people behind a computer screen that are affected for good or for bad by what we might say on a message board or a blog.

Julie

[stop the bleeding]

15. Good post

I am way too uptight to be a Mod, but I am glad that we have them.

Can't wait to here about 2 and 3.

[brainshrub]

17. 2 and 3 are long stories.

#2 will probably get published in August.

#3 Is the best website advise I've ever gotten. It will be a classic post. I don't know when I'll do it, but definitely before the end of the year.