Why we're passionate about theater, yet trash almost everything we see.- Page 4

[dramamama611]

Posted: 3/10/13 at 10:34pm

From what most people say, this one is pretty tame in the world of discussion boards.

As I said before, there are simply a few posters that it is best to totally ignore. Those that continue to engage them only add fuel to the fire.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 3/10/13 at 10:53pm

I recognize the wisdom of your post, dramamama. As a rule, refusing to offer negative reinforcement is a great deterrent.

But I must admit I have been astounded to see posters here continue attacks for months on end, whether or not they are ignored.

You are right, however, that nothing here compares to what I see on non-moderated boards, particularly sports sites.

(OK, now I'll admit that this post is OT. The Threadjacker has struck again!)

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 3/10/13 at 11:09pm

"From what most people say, this one is pretty tame in the world of discussion boards."

What most people say here, you mean. Some boards aren't moderated at all. Any thing goes.

The other boards I do frequent (not all of them theatrically oriented) are all well moderated to keep personal attacks, "joke" threads, trolls and off-topic discussions from occurring. It can be very difficult to near impossible to have real discussions here, b/c of these distractions. We shouldn't have to separate the wheat from the chaff. We shouldn't have to scroll past posters who attack and insult others. Those posters should be banned, or at least be made to be civil.

For example, most of the past dozen or more posts on this thread are ridiculous arguments and personal attacks amongst various posters.

Just b/c this board is tamer than, say, Datalounge, doesn't mean this one can't be improved upon. If I wanted the Datalounge trash, I'd go there. When I'm here, on the main topic board, I want to discuss theater. I don't want to read the trivial battles b/w other posters, or "funny" threads, or snarky comments that have nothing to do with the topic. It's all about the moderation, and the moderation here is inconsistent.

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 9:27am

Boy, there sure are a lot of different types of threads you don't want to read. Why don't you buy an island and name yourself queen of it and then you can impose your very strict censorship rules on all the monkeys and parrots, instead of being tormented by free speech here?

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 9:39am

I'm not tormented. When I want to read trashy stuff, I DO go to Datalounge. When I want to discuss theater, I go to a theater board, where, oddly enough, I expect the main topic to be theater. Is that so unreasonable?

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 9:53am

The Datalounge theater gossip threads are pretty damned entertaining. If occasionally slanderous.

[sinister teashop]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 10:08am

Is this the Broadway World confessional booth?

Updated On: 3/11/13 at 10:08 AM

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 10:10am

Now that this thread has been thoroughly corrupted, I'll confess that I love Datalounge - and I like the idea of being Queen of an island, where I can impose very strict rules on sleek island boys (or visa-versa, if I'm in the mood).

Parrots and monkeys don't do it for me.

But as for here, I want to talk about theater. A place for everything, and everything in its place.


eta: It was funnier before you edited it, sinister teashop


Updated On: 3/11/13 at 10:10 AM

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 10:18am

Namo, I agree about the DL theater threads being a lot of fun!

ghostlight, I understand what you're trying to say about wanting to discuss theater here, but it's coming across like you don't want us to have personalities or any fun. Any sentence that isn't 100% related to theater isn't allowed here!

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 10:33am

Then I'm expressing myself poorly, whizzer. I don't see why personal insults are ever allowed here. I don't understand why the same trolls are allowed to disrupt the board over and over again, nor why old time posters who hold grudges against other old time posters frequently battle it out on threads that have nothing to do with the topic.

There is an off-topic board. Why can't all that non-theater related stuff go there?

eta: or why these personal battles and attacks can't be taken to pms. You have plenty of personality. I've never seen you attack another poster. It is possible to have disagreements without arguing, but I see the same posters fighting each other over and over again, and over the same things. I see new posters come here, asking for information, and they're often mocked or given false information. I do thank you for your response. I'll try to be more careful with my tone in the future.




Updated On: 3/11/13 at 10:33 AM

[ARTc]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 10:50am

Although I started my adult life in the theater, currently I am an Information Architect. In the world of digital media there is what is appropriately called Reputation Systems. The currency of these systems is often referred to as Karma. Honest.

Basically, how does a forum like BroadwayWorld monitor the tone of the posts? These systems were developed when it became understood that some systems would receive hundreds of thousands - even millions - of posts and that there just wasn't the resources to hire hundreds / thousands of people to read and deem each post acceptable.

Most of us are familiar with these systems. Ebay uses commenting on the user's experience. Facebook too has a Reputation System. The list goes on. They are not simple and do involve some human moderation, but BroadwayWorld could use a flag program with a series of algorithms that assign Karma points based on key factors like how often the user posts and how often they're called out on their posts by other users. The algorithms are complex and must accommodate many factors, but these systems can work.

I know that my feelings were hurt when after years of posting I found myself constantly being trashed and accused of many inaccurate things for liking an unpopular show here. People can be really nasty. I wish it would stop.

[suestorm]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 10:54am

Art is subjective so who is to say who is right or wrong. the thing that makes me smh is when posters will trash a show that is just in previews like Golden Boy, BaT, or as was the case with Cinderella before they even started the previews. its idiotic.

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 11:07am

ARTc, I don't think any of the monitors here regularly read the posts, likely because there aren't enough of them and they don't have enough time (and I also doubt they are paid much if at all).

I think the only reason offensive posts are ever removed is b/c they are reported as abuse by other posters. If BWW had any of the flag programs you discussed, many of the regular posters here would have been long since banned.

I will say that the fact that you're showing up under both your new name and your old one might mean they are working on something to try to eliminate duplicate accounts.

[ARTc]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 11:51am

Not sure what's going on regarding my user name. I have noticed that under the same login, I appear as both my name, Scott Briefer and my nickname, ARTc. Somewhere in all of this, there's also, Maharajah.

I think this has happened because I had been a member. A while ago I asked to be removed from membership, and then recently thought I'd give this another shot. I actually had been quite a regular poster before I found myself ruminating on how rude I felt some members were.

As I wrote earlier, I was - on more than one occasion - dismissed as a shill. On another occasion I was deemed young and inexperienced and knew nothing about the theater. Again, rude and simply not true. I had a rather interesting career in the theater that spanned many years, and listed more Broadway musicals than any other poster when there was a thread asking us to list the Broadway musicals we've seen. I just got fed up with the attitude.

I started this thread because I wanted to read other members take on the tone of this forum. I even questioned my own internalized theatrephobia: did I have some unresolved anger towards myself and others passionate about the theatre. Did I have issue with my own inner drama queen.

I love the theatre. I love being able to comment with other likeminded people. I am just find myself often offended when reading this board.




Updated On: 3/11/13 at 11:51 AM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 11:54am

You're fine as long as you don't get into a fight with yourself.

However, did you use different email addresses to register but similar enough to each other that you might accidentally use the first one sometimes when you log in?

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 12:09pm

What's really odd is that ARTc's last comment showed up on the board as being made by Scott Briefer, but then when I actually opened the thread, it said ARTc.

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 12:20pm

I think it is possible that it's an ip address thing. BWW has been playing with different toys recently, and to avoid repeat accounts, this may be one of them, and it's just not working quite properly yet.

[ARTc]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 12:29pm

I think it is an IP address thing, too. I believe I might have used the same password when creating this new account, but the username had to be different because when I tried creating it, it said that my old username was taken. I thought I could just reopen that account, but it wouldn't let me do that either. In the end, this worked and allowed me back in, but with this weird sort of quirk.

Honestly, I don't mind people knowing my name. I am just a little fearful that someone soon is going to start accusing me of being "choose typical BroadwayWorld nasty" because of a computer issue that is outside of my control.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 12:37pm

ghostlight, thanks for clarifying what you were saying. I guess it is a fine line between the occasional fun snark and personal attacks that should be curtailed.

I never try to provoke personal attacks and for the most part have steered clear of any squabbles. There is a poster I don't get along with very well, and for the most part we are able to avoid each other. That seems to work out well for me.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 1:53pm

Whizzer,

You can use my screenname and directly address me, you immature little cry-baby.

What are we? 12?

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 2:22pm

Growl,

You've got it all wrong.

This cry-baby has a screw loose for you! :)

[homeimp]

Posted: 3/11/13 at 8:59pm

Reply to Joe. I don't think any show is "overrated". It is rated exactly as it should be. It's just that the show was appreciated more by the majority than you. Nor is a show "underrated" because you liked it more than others. I would love to think that Once was actually overrated and that , well, let's say Chaplin was in fact underrated. But sadly I must defer to the majority.