Can I just clarify this sites stance on freedom of speech?

SarahChambers

I am literally just checking here because I have a pretty good idea of the answer, but I just want to ensure that there isn't a huge ball of crazy hiding somewhere in the woodwork. The question is, this site doesn't bill itself as one which is open to the idea of freedom of speech is it? Treads are closed without debate because of moderators, which is fair enough, provided they don't still think that the website is one which is in line with the idea of freedom of speech.

sceptre

Hi Sarah

Boards.ie has never claimed to offer complete freedom of speech.

Whether you can actually have complete freedom of speech in the real world at all is a separate debate (the 'shouting "fire" in a crowded theatre' question and so on).

You haven't provided a link to anything you'd specifically like addressed, though I note you've had a small number of posts deleted from After Hours in the past fortnight and would recommend that you initially take it up with the After Hours moderators if that is an issue for you.

In the absence of that however, to answer the question you've posed above: does boards.ie offer or claim to offer unbridled unfettered free speech? No.

Never has done, likely never will. The site is itself fettered by external limitations (such as libel law), reasonable rules that cover the site as a whole (you'll see most of these if you click on the FAQ link at the top of this page), reasonable rules for specific forums (you'll see those in the charter stickied at the top of each forum) and judgement calls made by moderators on behalf of and for the benefit of the forums as a whole.

Short answer's still "no". Everything else I've added to this post is the rationale behind the "no".

If you'd like to complain about closing of specific threads or specific deletions made by moderators, both for the benefit of the community, feel free to take up with the moderator in question in the first instance, with the relevant category moderator in the second instance and here with the site administrators in a final instance.

None of us are ogres. We like speech and people coming together online to chat, solve problems and discuss, it's what the site is for.

SarahChambers

sceptre wrote: »

Hi Sarah

Boards.ie has never claimed to offer complete freedom of speech.

Whether you can actually have complete freedom of speech in the real world at all is a separate debate (the 'shouting "fire" in a crowded theatre' question and so on).

You haven't provided a link to anything you'd specifically like addressed, though I note you've had a small number of posts deleted from After Hours in the past fortnight and would recommend that you initially take it up with the After Hours moderators if that is an issue for you.

In the absence of that however, to answer the question you've posed above: does boards.ie offer or claim to offer unbridled unfettered free speech? No.

Never has done, likely never will. The site is itself fettered by external limitations (such as libel law), reasonable rules that cover the site as a whole (you'll see most of these if you click on the FAQ link at the top of this page), reasonable rules for specific forums (you'll see those in the charter stickied at the top of each forum) and judgement calls made by moderators on behalf of and for the benefit of the forums as a whole.

Short answer's still "no". Everything else I've added to this post is the rationale behind the "no".

If you'd like to complain about closing of specific threads or specific deletions made by moderators, both for the benefit of the community, feel free to take up with the moderator in question in the first instance, with the relevant category moderator in the second instance and here with the site administrators in a final instance.

None of us are ogres. We like speech and people coming together online to chat, solve problems and discuss, it's what the site is for.

That is fine, I just wanted to make sure that the website wasn't claiming to support free speech, because it clearly doesn't.

sceptre

You won't find unfettered public free speech anywhere on the planet. We'd never make false claims - it's all there in the FAQ I mentioned above, always publicly available to everyone passing. It's a good and clear read.

SarahChambers

sceptre wrote: »

You won't find unfettered public free speech anywhere on the planet. We'd never make false claims - it's all there in the FAQ I mentioned above, always publicly available to everyone passing. It's a good and clear read.

I realise there is no unfettered free speech anywhere, I acknowledge the existence of practical limitations on freedom of speech, but the limitations which the moderators seem to impose are far beyond the minimum. This website is far from what it could be regarding free speech. I am aware that this is your prerogative, but I am sickened by the idea that people may think that this website is operating at the maximum feesable level of freedom regarding content, when it clearly is far from this. The purpose of this thread was to establish whether this was situation existed.

sceptre

Our views will have to differ then as I can't agree with your view at all and I'm obviously not going to argue over yours. From above you'll now be aware of how to complain/object/appeal specific cases if you ever decide to at any future point though:). Appreciate you giving your view.