Disappointed

[JELLYROLLS4LIFE]

This is true. But the stans got more power bc there was no counter arguments allowed.

It’s almost like free speech is an important, bedrock principle that helps to prevent abuses of power.

yes, but a message board like this is a private forum. There's the right to free speech, but there's the right to choose what to allow and not allow. And as a private entity that is their right. Avoiding politics of it, but it's no different than Facebook or Twitter choosing who to allow and who to block. They're a private company they can do what they want as long as it isn't breaking a law.

 

[PamNC]

Yes! The text he shared from Pete following the death of his father reveals without a doubt how horrible of a person Pete is. I’m so glad Sean is in a better place now because he never deserved what Pete put him through.

is the latest and greatest info from you know who on that ****** site?

 

[Starport Seven-Five]

Definitely not. I don’t remember many at all. Points? Sure, but I still feel it was not a huge issue here.

My experience has been it’s very inconsistently applied between the mods/webmasters (historically at least). What some mods/webmasters considered “political” others considered debate.

 

[Jamie77]

i imagine we'll get something after the California event. They cant NOT do another live show without acknowledging the elephant in the room.

Also, funny thing about all this...
there's still a HUGE amount of listeners/viewers who have no idea about all this.
Not everyone is on disboards, checks youtube comments, etc.
And the Dis isn't huge enough to have it be a trending topic on facebook/twitter, so it hasn't exactly blown up there.
So if you're not as plugged in, this is just not on your radar.

I haven't been on disboards in a while, but i do still listen to the main show and Universal Edition weekly (more so audio than the video version).
If i hadn't opened youtube to see Ryno was doing a livestream when i did the other night, i would still be in the dark about all this.

The only reason why I found out about all of this despite not being regular on the boards or current on the shows was that I felt a disturbance in the force.

 

[mustinjourney]

Huh?? I don't see the correlation between the two -he owns the Boards, it's his vision. He can moderate the Boards any way he sees fit. About the only thing that would've seen him step aside would be the current situation -and that's only because it threatens the livelihood of so many others. Whether he does is still to be determined....

The heavy moderating created a sense of fear in posters. Which created an echo chamber that further allowed for the owner to act in egregious ways without ever getting called out on it.

Keep in mind, if the other website didn’t exist, none of this stuff would have come to light.

Moderating is ok so long as it is done in moderation. But some of the moderating was ridiculous.

For example, I got points once for being sarcastic. Which I found very strange considering Pete’s brand is dripping with sarcasm. After that whole incident, I more or less stopped posting since I had no idea what could get me banned.

 

[mustinjourney]

yes, but a message board like this is a private forum. There's the right to free speech, but there's the right to choose what to allow and not allow. And as a private entity that is their right. Avoiding politics of it, but it's no different than Facebook or Twitter choosing who to allow and who to block. They're a private company they can do what they want as long as it isn't breaking a law.

I’m not saying they can’t do it. Just pointing out why it’s important in general. Sunlight is a great disinfectant.

 

[john7994]

This is true. But the stans got more power bc there was no counter arguments allowed.

It’s almost like free speech is an important, bedrock principle that helps to prevent abuses of power.

Interesting thought experiment ... as free speech is also often used to abuse power as well. Depends on perspective, the people involved and the targets I guess ... but I am pro free speech for the record!

My only suggestion to your original post was that I saw very little to curb, but a fair amount of encouragement (using the famous "rants" as an example), to help manifest abusive behaviors right in plain sight - whether the target was Disney, the staff, or the sponsors.

Anyways, thanks for letting me exercise my free speech!

 

[Epcot Forever Forever]

I just have to say based on past policies I am STUNNED they are allowing the things shared on this thread. I have to assume there has been instructions by someone to leave things be for the most part.

Or, Pete has gone awol.

 

[pianomanzano]

Or, Pete has gone awol.

he apparently deactivated his twitter, so that tracks.

 

[Dan Murphy]

This is where I fell down the well, and even Lassie couldn't get me out. I felt like the The Man in Kafka's "The Trial". When your correspondence with the Moderator during the appeal process is held to the same standard as a post, there is no way out.

Mod: "You made a political post. 20 points for you!"
Me: "No I didn't. I made a reference to Nate Silver who is one of the foremost autorities on sports odds and betting."
Mod. "Nate Silver does election forecasting so I consider your post political. And now you are being Argumentative. 10 more points for you!"
Me: "Well now you are just being ridiculous and obstinate. Perhaps you didn't know that Nate Silver was involved in sports odds making, but now you do, so I assume that you will reverse your decision."
Mod: "You have now engaged in a Minor Persona Attack. 20 more points for you! You are now up to 50 points."
Me: "Who do I need to contact to discuss this further? You are obvioulsy incapable of understanding this issue."
Mod: "That was an Attack On A Moderator. 60 more points for you! Buh-Bye!!"

And that was it. Banished as a result of a questionable 20 point post, which let to 90 more points incurred during the appeal process. Really hard to advance a legitimate appeal if doing so is considered "Argumentative" and an "Attack". Isn't an appeal, by its very nature "argumentative?" But I promise to do better.

It happens

 

[GAN]

The heavy moderating created a sense of fear in posters. Which created an echo chamber that further allowed for the owner to act in egregious ways without ever getting called out on it.

Keep in mind, if the other website didn’t exist, none of this stuff would have come to light.

Moderating is ok so long as it is done in moderation. But some of the moderating was ridiculous.

For example, I got points once for being sarcastic. Which I found very strange considering Pete’s brand is dripping with sarcasm. After that whole incident, I more or less stopped posting since I had no idea what could get me banned.

I've been here a while and never once felt a "fear" in posting. I've had a few times where I had to take a couple weeks off, but I can't say I exactly followed the rules either ...but I will say whatever the issue it was probably worth it to say what I wanted. Maybe only one time did I feel the moderator overstepped -but whatever. If people aren't happy with the rules, go off and start a Discussion Board of their own.

 

[run217]

I just would think with a meet coming up next week, a statement could curb a lot of awkward questions that would crop up there. But, I also get that lots of people aren’t aware.

I’m a long-time listener of the shows, have booked a costly family trip through Dreams, and started lurking on TL ages ago when I (like many others) started to wonder about the random disappearances and palpable weirdness on the show occasionally. I feel like I represent the camp that’s probably most in-tune with the recent news (along with Disboard posters).

 

[Starport Seven-Five]

Keep in mind, if the other website didn’t exist, none of this stuff would have come to light.

There are other places to discuss this. The mods that were banned in 2021 shared info on a different website that is much less toxic.

 

[mustinjourney]

I've been here a while and never once felt a "fear" in posting. I've had a few times where I had to take a couple weeks off, but I can't say I exactly followed the rules either ...but I will say whatever the issue it was probably worth it to say what I wanted. Maybe only one time did I feel the moderator overstepped -but whatever. If people aren't happy with the rules, go off and start their Discussion Board of their own.

Fear might not be the right word, but plenty of people have mentioned having to self-censor or feel like they’re walking on eggshells within the forums.

 

[MissGina5]

I left here when Ryan was kicked off and while I felt sympathy for Pete for a long time during the pandemic I have lost any good will I had left. I hope all is well for the rest of the team and that they transition into their The Conners era smoothly

 

[disneysteve]

Fear might not be the right word, but plenty of people have mentioned about having to self-censor or feel like they’re walking on eggshells within the forums.

Exactly. I got slapped for repeatedly reporting a new poster who was trolling. For some reason I will never understand, the mods stood behind that person even though every one of their posts did nothing but stir the pot. And as mentioned earlier, daring to disagree with the mods just got you in more trouble. It was downhill from there and I soon went from visiting daily to not being here for a few years.

 

[mustinjourney]

Exactly. I got slapped for repeatedly reporting a new poster who was trolling. For some reason I will never understand, the mods stood behind that person even though every one of their posts did nothing but stir the pot. And as mentioned earlier, daring to disagree with the mods just got you in more trouble. It was downhill from there and I soon went from visiting daily to not being here for a few years.

Same here.

I practically lived on the DVC boards and then abandoned it altogether once I got in trouble for being sarcastic in response to the dvc board sponsor.

 

[thunderbird1]

My experience has been it’s very inconsistently applied between the mods/webmasters (historically at least). What some mods/webmasters considered “political” others considered debate.

And whether a "political" (or sarcastic) statement would be deleted, tolerated or championed seemed to depend more on who was making the statement than the content of the statement. That, along with the revolving door of people seriously lacking in Disney experience, is what drove me from the podcast and these boards to other sources for Disney information after 15+ years.

And that's no shade towards any of the people who passed through that revolving door - I think we all know that the fault for that belongs with the person who did the hiring. I might be a perfectly nice person, but if I was hired to contribute to a podcast about sports, fans would be unsubscribing from that podcast in droves.

 

[mort1331]

WOW after reading everything here and other places I am getting flashbacks to Tiger King.
There is a lot of similar direct and side stories.
Scary

 

[CampbellzSoup]

Exactly. I got slapped for repeatedly reporting a new poster who was trolling. For some reason I will never understand, the mods stood behind that person even though every one of their posts did nothing but stir the pot. And as mentioned earlier, daring to disagree with the mods just got you in more trouble. It was downhill from there and I soon went from visiting daily to not being here for a few years.

That’s a problem. You were one of the nicest people I know. I know Nikki was unfair with me too.