New LRC Not So Much Fun - Is The Site Moderated Too Much Now?

The same handful of trolls keep complaining about moderation. So the mods must be doing something right.

The site may also be growing desperate for original content and access to athletes. I state this because nearly all threads discussing American runners get deleted rather quickly, even when the comments are civilized. Positing why certain athletes are having less than stellar seasons are quickly wiped out despite the comments talking about things like fatigue, focus, post-Olympic letdown, and similar reasons. Start a thread claiming that all runners from Country X are doped to the gills and the mods let it live a long life full of crap posting and racist invective.

The SJD/DGR thread that got killed after two months? 90% of the comments were fair criticism and satire about his content. Many expressed genuine concern about his state of mind. Thousands of comments and tens of thousands of clicks attributed to that single thread. So, why did it suddenly disappear? Why did the topic become forbidden and suddenly labeled as "harrassment"?

The only consistency is inconsistency. Rojo's comments would indicate that he doesn't have much control nor a handle on moderation. Why not come clean? Tell us what is acceptable and unacceptable without reference to a vague moderation policy. Clearly, interpretation of the policy depends on the whims of the moderator policing the board at that moment. I have questions why Courtney Frerichs blames Celiacs Disease for her poor summer of racing yet her IG this week has been a visual tour of high gluten pastries consumed in Belgium before calling it a year. I could start a thread about her but I would probably get banned for harrassment. If I create a thread entitled, "Could Jakob I and Francine N have a baby together? What naughty bits would it have and could it DEVASTATE Mohamed K's doped up progeny?" and that would be fair game and shoot to the top of the "What's Hot" list.

Well, it seems you should stick to 4Chan if misogyny, casual racism, right wing nationalism, and disinformation is what you seek.

LetsRun is much better now that there is stricter moderation and the up and down votes. Up and down votes on your posts (the ones that aren't deleted) show that you are in the minority with your complaints.

There should be an entirely separate section of the message board that allows for less moderation. Make people click on a disclaimer, "Material here is controversial, less moderated, and may hurt your feelings. Proceed only if you understand this." Yes, moderate for spam, porn, and genuinely extremist content, but otherwise let 'er rip. I'll volunteer to be a moderator. No charge. Across the Internet, I have found that the less moderated spaces are far more informative. Sure there are some nuts and wackos, but literally every advance in science and knowledge in human history was started by someone initially dismissed as a nut or a wacko.

OP is right about the moderation getting worse. I've had a number of comments deleted, and all were G-rated language and/or factual but contrary to a left wing world view. I even wrote "This post was deleted" on one thread and that got deleted. There are certain topics that even a slight deviation from rigid conformity results in deletion. Moderators may think they are winning, but in reality they are highlighting topics they are hyper sensitive about because facts aren't on their side. That knowledge is then taken and posted on other sites to great celebration, glee, and laughter.

^^ Love that I am comment 45

Why?

I think you just have to be a lot more subtle now. I got banned recently for "vulgar/profane" posting and I've never posted anything near as vulgar as what Rojo has posted himself in the past year and remains posted on this message board. Even another recent post merely linking to Rojo's vulgar post was deleted. Similarly, posts with known facts about certain high profile runners get deleted without explanation, whether it's regarding public social media content from the mile AR holder and his wife or the admitted steroid usage by the former half-marathon AR holder who is a mod here. Special protection and taboo running related topics make this a rather bland discussion board. I actually appreciate it because it encourages me to find something better for entertainment value. As someone I know once put it, the Brojos embody everything I find repulsive about the east coast.

So weird that anyone would oppose more free speech, especially when no one is required to participate.

Someone could just spam gibberish characters and clog up the messageboard, and I don’t think that would add to the site either.

Its a shame that hate, vitrol, slander and bigotry is allowed to stand while quirky threads with elaborate harmless jokes is deleted. Letsun has turned into the chain smoking, cursing mum who hits their children "for bad manners". I'll be in my shoedio untill letsrun changes.

Why would you care about gibberish? You will choose not to participate, right? That said, of course nonsense like that would be deleted as per my articulated suggestion above. Libs are genuinely terrified of conversations they can't control.

I'll be honest...the recent moderation has caused me to visit the board less. If that's what the brojos want to accomplish for this, then they're doing a good job! Too many strange deletions for posts that do not deserve it. So much for free speech! 🤣

Asking you to articulate WHY the site should have a “less moderated section” equates to my being a lib that’s terrified of conversations I can’t control? Spoiler alert: I don’t control what is moderated on LRC.