Firstly, I haven't been around the forums for awhile because I started my own IT business, but I occassionally "check in" to get the vibe.

Something in the news this morning caught my eye and I would welcome opinion, commentary and yes, abuse....I kind of count on it in fact!

Yahoo!7: Who are they you ask if you are not Asian-Australian and aged under 30! - well hello, they attract 7 million users per month! Given our population and the profile of Yahoo!7's users, I would say that this includes a number of out-of-country users as well.

Back at home, Yahoo!7 has a high profile partner that we have heard about, our own Seven Network (hence the !7), and this piece of news is worth paying attention to.

Yahoo!7 have introduced strong filters on their forum to block words and close down commentary on stories THEY believe might attract abusive posts. Well what kind of stories would qualify, you wonder? One recent example is shutting down commentary on the Pakistani cricketing scandal due to nasty posts.

Conversly, they plan to promote feel good stories, such as stories about former asylum stories who have made good.

It's all very PC...delivered straight to your PC. Welcome to the filtered world.

People can't be trusted to be civil when thousands of different opinions are floating around. Such is the nature of the beast.

If certain words are used to attack. Certain words will be blocked.
If people are attacking on difference of opinion, discourage controversial and opinion based discussions.

Makes sense to me. If children don't behave, remove their privileges

thanks...for reminding/me..how...the other forums
shut-down..anything..they disagree/with

if i..need to/be censored..i know/where to go

7..million..hits..
what/you-want..a wow?

i love/quality..real-opinion..not pap...propaganda
[nor..sports]..

having people..logging-on...50 times a day..
really lifts..the numbers..
but then who wants..to read..what nervouse-nellies..fear anyhow

i cant/think..why grayham..would post..an advertorial..for yahoo
but it is/his..right...he is a most-fair..moderator..allowing..all to be heard..which is why i stay...here

i guess..an occasional/advetorial..is fine

[have you returned..the favour..
and let yahoo..readers..know about..olo?]
and the benefits..of allowing..every-one..a voice

see many..simply..want..their thought...out-there
i see..no benefit..in posting..your honest/opinions
then having..some YAH0O-moderator..with a bias/fear..delete..it

[it sort-of..removes..incentive..to post..]

worse..alienates..the very people..who need/want..to be heard..
but cant..in this yahoo/bu-sin-ess..as usual..commercial..world..of the allmighy/dollar-chasers..

selling their/product..not a service

any-how..enough...of my whining

im glad..you found..something..you love
thanks..for your report...appoligies..for my retort

media..is the biggest-reason..for things being..the way it is
and i have tried to post with the best..bbc/abc/sbs..and so-many/more

but they are moderated..by people..doing their..'job'
hushing-down discent..or serving..the masters..adgenda
or dumbing-down..the serfs..

but..im over/that,..'sir-vice'
again..thanks for the info

please under-stand..if many dont go..for the spiel
usually if i cant/add..something..i prefer..not to post

but so few have/posted...
i just thought..i would help-you..out

so anyhow cheers
no need for reply
my first thoughts were..nothing to/see..here

but i wouldnt..say that to you..
only trying-to..help-out..poor..yahoo

by/the-way

how..many..posts..
these 7 million..post per-day?

wow..that many
that just reveales..they really dont go there to post

so why do /hey bother..going at all?
to see..if no post..is complaining..about them

hurtfull..to them..
or their bosses/industry

ie to monitor..the moderator?

be-cause they lack..faith
in free-speech..

who knows/where..that could..lead...eh?

how dare..the serfs/presume..above their station
delecte..it..his master/their sponcer..wouldnt like...that...lol

cant have people..thinking..
more about..that..

where is that..delete-button

Hello, KatieO

First of all let me wish you well with your IT business. It's a jungle out there, but running your own race and being in control of your own destiny is extremely satisfying. I wouldn't go back to the treadmill for a king's ransom.

Not that they'd have me back anyway...

So where is this news item?

>>Something in the news this morning caught my eye<<

Couldn't find a story along the lines you describe, please provide a link.

You will find - if your business extends to the web, and you open it to the public for comment (e.g. via a blog) - that it is absolutely essential to moderate it fiercely. If you don't, it quickly goes off the rails.

Is it censorship, when you delete stuff you don't want associated with your site?

Yahoo!7 does not present itself in the abstract, it has standards and guidelines that form an important component of its online presence. I think it has every right to give non-conforming material the flick.

So long as it makes it clear, that the output has been bowdlerised. The market can then make an informed choice, whether to take its "screened" output, or whether to switch to a site that operates under different rules.

It would be dumb of them to do this without telling anyone. For a start, they will get found out extremely quickly. Also, if they think what they are doing is a "good thing", they should be advertising their product's positive aspects extremely heavily. Anything else is a cop-out.

There's no such thing as total freedom of expression. There never has been, and there never will be, and for very good reasons.

If a company censors because of an opinion they don't agree with, then that's bad, and if a company censors because someone is abusive then that's good. Knowing the difference between the two is essential. Many folks have extreme difficulty knowing the difference, and assume if things are censored it MUST be because the censors dislike freedom of speech. This then leads to all kinds of conspiracy theories, half truths and opinion based conjecture.

Just as in real face to face life, if someone online or with the written word anywhere decides to behave aggressively, rudely or abusively then that person deserves to be pulled into line. It's got NOTHING to do with freedom of speech, but EVERYTHING to do with courteous behaviour. Many people in these days of "me" "me" "me" and "I have a right", don't understand the difference between freedom of speech and discourteous behaviour.

Sorry jokey think you should remount its the tail end mate.
How could comment about a cricket team selling its country out be seen as anything other than grubby.
PC is against truth and how can something so wrong be called correct?