When I first read this, I read the 'you' as generic, which is the way I think Greg intended it. When I re-read it this morning I realised that he might have been addressing it to me. So I'm going to answer it assuming that he was - it's probably time I re-stated my 'censorship' policy anyway.I understand that there are sometimes when you react harshly to certain things (like an attack on a favourite player), other times when you take them in your stride.
Firstly the facts.
- The Bulletin Board is a public arena and anything said in any of the forums, other than the private ones, is assumed to be said in public.
- A person who posts on this bulletin board can and may be held liable by any person who is injured by something said in that post.
- The publisher (me, through Nick as a minor) can and may also be held liable for such a post.
- Any action taken against me will adversely affect the future well-being of this site.
My yardstick is to try and separate the professional footballer from the person. Any statement made about the professional footballer is fair game, but I watch very closely anything said about the person. The border is obviously not clear cut and the two overlap so I have to guess the boundary and I do that based on sheer gut feeling. Whether or not I happen to like or dislike the player in question probably has an influence, but I'm aware of that and try not to let it happen.
The story that Member posted about Mal Michael was in the grey area. It concerned Mal and his behaviour as a person, but that behaviour affected his relationship with the Club and consequently affected his potential as a professional footballer. My yardstick here was to consider the possible consequences: was the story damaging to Mal personally? The answer was very clearly yes - and as I stated in an earlier post, there was no supporting evidence offered. I had to call the shot and I'm only human - it's not a job I'd wish on anybody else. Member obviously felt justified in posting the story and was a bit miffed when it was cut. It was purely a difference in judgement between the two of us. The deciding factor, for me, is that Member's actions could have injured me and the Bulletin Board, but that mine could only have upset him.
While I've got up a head of steam up, I should also mention the other two areas that may cause me to edit or delete posts - blasphemy and profanity.
I don't have a religion and that makes judgement of blasphemy very difficult - I would tend to let things through that would shock somebody else. I also don't have too much of a problem with profanity unless it's so gross that it makes my stomach turn. In both those cases I have to create an artificial (for me) border so that the bulletin board is comfortable for the majority without being stifled and it's not easy.
Nick only censors after talking to me, so where his name is attached to an edited or deleted post, it's really me that has made the decision.
I'm a non-interventionist and respect people's right to self-expression. I hate touching anyone else's post and would never do it unless I felt it absolutely necessary. I would certainly never do it just to protect a player's or the Club's image or because I disagreed with what the poster was saying.
That's about it I think. I'd appreciate questions or feedback. The job's always easier if you have some idea of how the question is viewed by others.
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