Forum update - Non Football section

[Google Bot 3,994]

2 minutes ago, ......and Smith must score. said:

I would guess you must read TWTD, if only occasionally, and know that they lump everything together on there.

TWTD is primarily a fan/fanzine site though isn't it? That's quite different to a forum that's hosted by a newspaper/media outlet. 

[ricardo 8,098]

How pathetic.

[......and Smith must score. 1,637]

3 minutes ago, Google Bot said:

TWTD is primarily a fan/fanzine site though isn't it? That's quite different to a forum that's hosted by a newspaper/media outlet. 

That is true and does make a difference. I assume the two moderators on there must earn a living elsewhere but they do run a pretty tight ship unlike Waccoe which seems to have no moderation at all.

 

[Google Bot 3,994]

14 minutes ago, ......and Smith must score. said:

I assume the two moderators on there must earn a living elsewhere but they do run a pretty tight ship

I haven't a clue about them if i'm honest, it certainly looks interesting if i take a look on there on occasions, some of their off-topic debates do sit nicely within the main footballing section and quite some reasonable opinions too.  So I appreciate why you'd mention it.

[sonyc 6,145]

2 hours ago, PurpleCanary said:

From my observations there has always been significantly more childish behaviour and insults on the Football section, with most - not all - of the posts on the non-football section being  well-behaved. I suspect the unspoken rationale here, based on how some political threads have disappeared over the last few months, is more about controversial topics and opinions rather than a lack of politeness.

Agree with you PC. I find that the main message board is AS tribal. And worth staying away from when it (regularly) goes towards infighting territory. The match thread is often off limits!  Perhaps I'm in a minority thinking that you can navigate round a site, be independent minded and moreover, be polite. Nor get drawn in. If you do you can always stay away for a while. Self regulation I guess. It's a shame that some can't seem to do that and it means others are unfairly affected. 

I have enjoyed the nature, music, film, TV and similar threads (like topics not worth the conversation!). I don't understand why they can't continue I must say. 

They could easily just ask posters not to post political subjects. But then life is all about politics - of one kind of other ...isn't it?t.... and this place is a microcosm of society so all kinds of views will be expected. 

Anyway, decision made it seems. Thank you for all your thoughtful and insightful comments over the years on politics. I've enjoyed them for certain. You can articulate stuff very well. I'm saying some goodbyes bit by bit you'll have no doubt gathered! I may stay to contribute some Norwich talk but will more probably remain a reader. I've got to know hundreds of posters and posting styles over 20 years and would wish to keep reading. This is a super forum overall. But this statement here marks a sad day. 

 

[Nuff Said 6,033]

1 hour ago, Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Man said:

Or maybe an example of why it was needed in the first place. 

Connor is primarily paid to report on Norwich City, not moderate a forum. Getting rid of Non-Football will reduce his workload regarding the latter.

What it will also do is reduce the traffic to the forum, which doesn’t seem like the best commercial decision.

i realise a “no sex, religion or politics” rule would need policing as there’s always someone who thinks their contribution is so important it just has to be said out loud, but it would seem to be a less draconian starting place.

[Yobocop 1,467]

4 hours ago, SouthwellC said:

Good morning everyone. I hope we’re all doing well. 

I want to make you aware of some changes we’ve decided to make to the board in light of a drastic increase in poor behaviour again. Unfortunately, we have made the decision to remove the ‘Non-Football’ section of this message board.  This is not something we have done lightly, but the majority of the reports we receive, and this has increased drastically over recent months, surround squabbling and child-like behaviour on those threads. Many of them are centred around political discussions. To make it clear, this is a football board and the ‘Non-Football’ section was originally created for ‘General Sport, Films, Music, Television, Hobbies/Leisure, Tech & Gaming’. It’s fair to say that the majority of threads being created in that space don’t fit into those categories and haven’t for some time. 

From Monday, the ‘Non Football’ section will be removed and we will have just the main message board. We will be monitoring the threads carefully - anything deemed to be irrelevant, incendiary or inappropriate will be deleted. This is ultimately a message board for football related conversation, too often it has become a playground for hurling insults, squabbling and poor behaviour. It makes my four-year-old’s reception school class look well-mannered in comparison. Some of the stuff being posted on this message board is unacceptable and we are no longer prepared to tolerate it. 

I’m sorry to those of you who do use the message board in the correct way and are able to debate and discuss things like grown-ups, but frankly we’ve tolerated too much for far too long. Hopefully stripping the board back will make it a more pleasurable place for the majority of posters here to interact with fellow fans about Norwich City. 

I hope one day we are in a position to restore the ‘Non Football’ section on this page - but that is totally dependant on the behaviour of posters. 

Thank you, and sorry to start a Thursday morning on such a grumpy note! 

Connor 

Connor 

I agree it’s a shame, there are a lot of things said on here that no one would dream of saying in ‘real life’ 

would a form of ID (driving license, passport) upon sign up be an appropriate measure when using this forum? That way it may make people a bit more accountable for what they post 

Also if the Pinkun sold some tshirts with the slogan: 

‘It makes my four-year-old’s reception school class look well-mannered in comparison’

i would buy one

look after yourself mate and thanks for your moderation of these boards, i doubt it’s part of your JD - something some people would do well to remember 

[A Load of Squit 6,260]

11 minutes ago, Nuff Said said:

What it will also do is reduce the traffic to the forum, which doesn’t seem like the best commercial decision.

i realise a “no sex, religion or politics” rule would need policing as there’s always someone who thinks their contribution is so important it just has to be said out loud, but it would seem to be a less draconian starting place.

A trans gender bishop went into the House Of Lords and voted against the legalisation of banging the dust off your carpets on a Wednesday because he was a Tory and they hate carpets. Obviously all the tree hugging, wokeists spent the next few days bashing the Bishop.

[Duncan Edwards 2,428]

@SouthwellC if it would make things easier for you, I’m happy to send you a list of posters that are absolute ***** and if we ban them, jobs a good’un.

 

And can Morty come back yet? 
 

Cheers

[The Bristol Nest 612]

22 minutes ago, Duncan Edwards said:

@SouthwellC if it would make things easier for you, I’m happy to send you a list of posters that are absolute ***** and if we ban them, jobs a good’un.

 

And can Morty come back yet? 
 

Cheers

Probably is already..

[The Bristol Nest 612]

Sonyc - That post was cryptic and no pressure to share but hope you are ok.

On your point about it being shut down, it is indeed a shame that after 20+ years of the forum, it cannot be properly moderated. Is this really a new issue?

I find not reading a topic saves any offence taken but then again I am over 18yo.

Edited November 7, 2024 by The Bristol Nest

[wcorkcanary 4,839]

38 minutes ago, Duncan Edwards said:

@SouthwellC if it would make things easier for you, I’m happy to send you a list of posters that are absolute ***** and if we ban them, jobs a good’un.

 

And can Morty come back yet? 
 

Cheers

Practical as always Duncano , what about TvB ? He was fun too.

[shefcanary 3,068]

I was looking forward to my retirement and really getting stuck into the non-football section (I currently only visit if someone notifies me and usually only on music). Ah well ....

[Nuff Said 6,033]

45 minutes ago, Duncan Edwards said:

@SouthwellC if it would make things easier for you, I’m happy to send you a list of posters that are absolute ***** and if we ban them, jobs a good’un.

 

And can Morty come back yet? 
 

Cheers

 

[The Real Buh 3,798]

1 hour ago, Duncan Edwards said:

@SouthwellC if it would make things easier for you, I’m happy to send you a list of posters that are absolute ***** and if we ban them, jobs a good’un.

 

And can Morty come back yet? 
 

Cheers

*Gulps in buh*

[Canary Wundaboy 1,424]

Jesus Connor, is this the best solution you could come up with? By all means ban political discussion, insta-ban obvious repeat offenders etc, but not every thread on this board can be "Norwich City this and Norwich City that", some of have other interests and want to talk about the cricket, golf, health and fitness etc.

I've been on this board for almost 2 decades and it's always been the same, a handful of idiots ruining thread after thread with petty squabbles and name-calling. It's nothing that a bit of moderation from a few trusted volunteers couldn't have handled but for some reason first Pete and now yourself seem opposed to allowing anyone else with a bit of free time to help out.

I know there are technical limitations with the board, I get that. Which is depressing, because you could probably ban about a dozen posters on here and turn it into a land of rainbows and unicorns overnight.

[Greavsy 2,660]

2 hours ago, ......and Smith must score. said:

Think it’s a sledgehammer to a nut CC but I get what you mean 😉

I thought @cambridgeshire canary's post hit the nut on the head perfectly!

[Greavsy 2,660]

@SouthwellC

Whilst I rarely visit the non football section, so cannot comment on the content there, its a shame you have had to take this action when people cannot behave in a civil and respectful manner! 

I hope the rest of the forum remains and doesn't cause you and the others at Newsquest towers too much hassle moving forward. 

 

 

[KiwiScot 1,684]

I like it as it is. To visit the Pink Un Forum and read about Norwich and other things with Norwich fans. A lot of the time there's not as much doing on with Norwich so non-football can help pass the time. Strangely I don't feel like finding a stand alone "non-football" forum elsewhere. I come for Norwich and I stick around to enjoy the other things. The variety of things that get discussed in there with humour and insight can be very enjoyable.

Delete delete delete

@Feedthewolf - New forum time.

Edited November 7, 2024 by KiwiScot

[Petriix 3,249]

I think this is the wrong move. Healthy political debate is very important for a functioning society and, for some people, a forum like this might be the only place they experience these kinds of conversation. Social media becomes an echo chamber but on here we have an unusually broad spectrum of views, united by a common interest. 

As long as people aren't being abusive or inappropriate, I can't understand the need to shut down the discussion. If it's certain individuals then simply warn and ban them. This feels like a collective punishment - like keeping all the kids in at break because some of them misbehaved.

Personally I am struggling to imagine why any intervention is necessary. It must be easier to ban a user or two than to delete a whole section of the forum. It's likely that these topics will seep into the main discussion rather than disappearing completely. In a way I'd prefer not to hide the politics away in a dirty corner and have it in plain sight. I suspect, however, that this would be frowned upon. 

[sonyc 6,145]

1 hour ago, The Bristol Nest said:

Sonyc - That post was cryptic and no pressure to share but hope you are ok.

On your point about it being shut down, it is indeed a shame that after 20+ years of the forum, it cannot be properly moderated. Is this really a new issue?

I find not reading a topic saves any offence taken but then again I am over 18yo.

Didn't mean to be cryptic Bristol. I'm fine. I've enjoyed a long stint on this forum (April 2004!) and I actually like it all but tend to have lots of interests as well as Norwich City (retired now and have the time). I find it mostly civil and just ignore stuff when it gets shouty anyway.

The announcement just made sense to me to become more of a reader because I can't really provide much meaningful commentary on our team because I live a couple of hundred miles away and don't get to matches much so haven't much relevant to say. Others are far more informed. On other matters I am quite well read😉 ... but hey ho...it is what it is.

Connor did say some people would be affected and has said sorry. It's often the case in life that only a few bad apples make such a difference and clearly the moderator has run out of patience and cannot tolerate it anymore. A few posters on the non football side are quite the toxic kind but you can often quietly steer away (as you might in everyday life) or provide yourself with a wide berth🙂.

Maybe in a year or two they will decide to re-introduce a fuller site again?

[Nuff Said 6,033]

3 minutes ago, Petriix said:

I think this is the wrong move. Healthy political debate is very important for a functioning society and, for some people, a forum like this might be the only place they experience these kinds of conversation. Social media becomes an echo chamber but on here we have an unusually broad spectrum of views, united by a common interest. 

As long as people aren't being abusive or inappropriate, I can't understand the need to shut down the discussion. If it's certain individuals then simply warn and ban them. This feels like a collective punishment - like keeping all the kids in at break because some of them misbehaved.

Personally I am struggling to imagine why any intervention is necessary. It must be easier to ban a user or two than to delete a whole section of the forum. It's likely that these topics will seep into the main discussion rather than disappearing completely. In a way I'd prefer not to hide the politics away in a dirty corner and have it in plain sight. I suspect, however, that this would be frowned upon. 

All the excellent points, especially about the echo chamber.

 

I guess being a woolly liberal type (can I still say that?) the flip side is that it’s not Connor or Archant’s job to encourage wide ranging debate and consideration of the views of others, but as I said, if there’s less to talk about, there will be fewer visitors. Let’s hope that doesn’t lead to a slow decline in the health of the PinkUn. I really would have to get a life then.

[dylanisabaddog 6,188]

@SouthwellCwe have lost wonderful threads on music, TV, nature and cinema. And one about nothing in particular that was very funny. 

I don't understand the approach at all. Why not just delete people if they're a nuisance? 

[FenwayFrank 2,718]

Shame, I really enjoyed the music related threads which didn't have a bad word between posters on them

[PurpleCanary 6,459]

2 hours ago, sonyc said:

Agree with you PC. I find that the main message board is AS tribal. And worth staying away from when it (regularly) goes towards infighting territory. The match thread is often off limits!  Perhaps I'm in a minority thinking that you can navigate round a site, be independent minded and moreover, be polite. Nor get drawn in. If you do you can always stay away for a while. Self regulation I guess. It's a shame that some can't seem to do that and it means others are unfairly affected. 

I have enjoyed the nature, music, film, TV and similar threads (like topics not worth the conversation!). I don't understand why they can't continue I must say. 

They could easily just ask posters not to post political subjects. But then life is all about politics - of one kind of other ...isn't it?t.... and this place is a microcosm of society so all kinds of views will be expected. 

Anyway, decision made it seems. Thank you for all your thoughtful and insightful comments over the years on politics. I've enjoyed them for certain. You can articulate stuff very well. I'm saying some goodbyes bit by bit you'll have no doubt gathered! I may stay to contribute some Norwich talk but will more probably remain a reader. I've got to know hundreds of posters and posting styles over 20 years and would wish to keep reading. This is a super forum overall. But this statement here marks a sad day. 

 

I will miss your thought-provokingly reflective posts, sonyc.

[Nuff Said 6,033]

5 minutes ago, PurpleCanary said:

I will miss your thought-provokingly reflective posts, sonyc.

Me too, one of the good ‘uns. Of all the posters who contributed to Non-Football, you more than most tried hard to see both sides while clearly having strongly held beliefs. I’ll stop now before this starts to sound like an epitaph!

[Google Bot 3,994]

18 minutes ago, Petriix said:

I think this is the wrong move. Healthy political debate is very important for a functioning society and, for some people, a forum like this might be the only place they experience these kinds of conversation.

That's a brilliant point well made.

[Nuff Said 6,033]

It’s gone! 😢
Brutal.

 

Edit: no it’s hasn’t, it’s just really slow. That would have been the cunning solution, just slug the performance until no-one can be bothered any more.

Edited November 7, 2024 by Nuff Said

[Virtual reality 862]

Perhaps if you had all acted a bit more like Donald Trump and shown tolerance, Respect to others and their opinions, Then this wouldn’t have happened. Just a thought.

Edited November 7, 2024 by Virtual reality

[Nuff Said 6,033]

1 minute ago, Virtual reality said:

Perhaps if you had all acted a bit more like Donald Trump and shown respect to others and their opinions, Then this wouldn’t have happened. Just a thought.

POLITICS!