I feel as if the group is starting to thrive again after a really awful 2020 and it would be a shame to lose that now. Perhaps the added strain of the pandemic means we all have to be more careful, better to be hyper vigilant than unwittingly cause distress to someone.
One of the important things about humour is ‘know your audience’ We may feel we know everyone well enough NOT to be taken seriously but as anndanv demonstrated a while ago, a high number of people read the posts without ever joining the group or commenting.
I'm Eliza from the Community team. We would usually ask in our Community guidelines that moderation is not discussed on the Online Community. This is in order to protect the privacy of all of our members and to keep the Community a safe space and focused on support. However, as we know that our recent moderation might have caused some uncertainty for several members in the group and some people may feel that they would like more explanation, we felt it would be best to respond to you all here in the group.
All our moderation decisions are based on our Community guidelines, and are not based on the Community team’s personal opinions in any way. It is always our aim to treat every member of the Online Community fairly and equally. We know that in many instances, such as our recent moderation, breaking the guidelines is entirely unintentional.
We understand that sometimes, moderating the site can unintentionally cause upset. We would never want any of our members to feel that they didn’t understand why their post had been moderated, or to feel that they had been singled out by the Community team. This is why we are always open to discussing any of our moderation decisions in more detail with the person involved, and we ask any members that we have moderated to please respond to our email if they have any questions or concerns.
The Online Community is intended as a safe and supportive space for everyone affected by cancer. We know that being supportive can look different for everyone, and can include jokes and making light of situations. However, we also know that written words online can be interpreted in lots of different ways, especially when someone might be feeling low. All our members might have their own opinions on what feels right to post or see on the Online Community. Here in the Community team, we have our Community guidelines in place to ensure we are being mindful of different potential feelings and opinions when we make decisions about content on the site.
If you have any questions or concerns about any of our recent moderation action, please email us at community@macmillan.org.uk and let us know.
I dispute just about everything you have said. This is a safe place because of how we behave and what we post here. I am very upset, you have pretty well taken away something I looked forward to daily. Please do not try to justify to me what you have just posted. You have caused far more upset in one post than I ever could with a thousand. I am sure you will quickly be cancelling this one too.
I have no issue with you pulling posts where someone has complained or where it is clearly breaching guidelines such as swearing, naming names etc but the incredibly broad interpretation that you are using, makes posting almost any humorous comment illegal. It is humour that gets me through cancer. It feels like anything but a safe and supportive space when I feel my every comment is being examined under a microscope and I have to hesitate before posting anything that reflects the true me. We come here for the comfort gained from other people in our position and if you remove the humanity from our posts then you relegate us to unpaid content providers answering questions but unable to provide banter and good humour to those that need it most. Especially in a group like this we need people like and others to lift our spirits in dark times as only they can and now you are driving off the very people we need most due to your over rigorous interpretation of rules without the use of common sense. You say 'mindful of different potential feelings and opinions' Did anyone actually complain on this occasion? Almost anything could be potentially offensive to someone, where does this stop?
I could cry Nicky in gratitude to your post. You have dissected their views and found them wanting. When I think about how many of us are going to say "goodnight nurse" this year I feel enraged. I just can't say anymore, I am so fed up. I think I felt better having chemo. I might just troll them on here until they give me my P45, childish but might get my mind back where it should be.
