In the interest of transparency regarding how GameSpot handles it's moderation here is a copy of Moderator Gold Standard, which we expect all of our moderators to adhere to.
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The duty of a moderator is to monitor the posts being made on the forums and comments, essentially to keep an eye out for contravention of the Community Code of Conduct. In particular, it is to look out for threatening, racist, sexist, etc comments and things that are either directly inflammatory or pushing others to be so. In that sense it is a policing role.
Often, a simple post by the moderator saying 'hey, bring this back on track, please' does the trick if a thread is becoming problematic. A moderator is provided with a number of tools that allow him/her to edit, modify, move or delete a post, including the title, the members signature, avatar, images, etc.
Moderator words and actions are visible to the entire community, and they are role models. Remember this when conducting yourselves. Use your powers only for the betterment of the community.
The job is entirely voluntary and unpaid. There are no set hours of work, or hours per day to put in.
At GameSpot, being a moderator means the following:
Maintain
Outstanding
Discussions
Moderator Gold Standard
- Mods will not threaten/harass any forum members.
- Avoid getting angry at community members.
- Mods will not abuse their power.
- Be active.
Make an honest effort to check in during check in threads.
Moderator Duties
- Be welcoming to everyone until they give you a reason to do otherwise.
- Encourage community members you meet to join the discussion.
- Actions taken must be logged.
- Threads out of place should be moved to their proper locations.
- Deleted threads will be moved to Purgatory (a non-public forum that replaces thread deletion).
- Look at the forums often. Log in the forums and check the Mod board for any important announcements you might need to see.
Posts should only be locked/deleted for the following reasons:
- Harassment against a person/race/color/etc which includes racist or excessive vulgarity or profanity (Moderators should use discretion between lock/deletion and take responsibility when this action is taken).
- Duplicates (may be also locked at Moderator's discretion).
- Request of the originating author
- Porn
- Spam
- Violates GameSpot's Community Code of Conduct or the Terms of Use
- Derails
In the event of a thread lock or move, the moderator is expected to leave a note with their reason.
"Strikes" and how they work:
When a user does something that violates the Community Code of Conduct or the Terms of Use they may receive a strike:
First Offense: User will receive a warning.
Second Offense: Seven-day suspension from the site.
Third Offense: Permanent Ban from GameSpot.
Note: Strikes do not always need to be issued to remove a users access to the site. GameSpot will not tolerate hate speech, threats, and we will ban accordingly at our own discretion.
The GameSpot community team, and our dedicated moderators will be working diligently towards improving the conversation on the site. We hope you continue to enjoy the site. If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or queries for the moderators or the community managers, please use the Ask the Mods board.
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