Forum moderation is totally inadequate - openly racist/anti-Semitic/homophobic content stays up

[medicinezombie]

Despite clearly filtering posts to make sure they don't contain harmful links...and checking if the link is a Steam page link....

Posts containing blatantly racist content stays up usually forever.

There is no excuse for this! Steam checks posts for harmful links, checks posts for "swear words" but open, blatant racism is fine and stays even when flagged.

Often, comments pushing back on blatant, overt racism are deleted/moderated before the racism is, if it happens at all.

I am personally a lot less interested in spending money in Steam now because I am tired of hate speech, which Steam seems to be FOSTERING by allowing way way too harmful content to stay up, forever.

[InnerPhoenix]

valve allow this stuff is no surprise, over the past few years, forums have just got worse and worse, and valve imo has become one of those companies who doesn't care about something unless it inter fears with profits.

[Tito Shivan]

Автор сообщения: Weimu

you've seen yourself a certain other user who purposefully makes alt accounts to ban evade and constantly troll in every discussion

The paid mods seem to have a really lenient approach to people creating alt accounts. It's a piece of feedback we tried very throughly to get to them, but whatever the book they're following to moderate it doesn't seem to be consistent on pursuing evading bans.

Which unfortunately has already taken a toll in the quality of the forums

Автор сообщения: Crashed

Wonder if they are using VPNs or other IP swithing methods?

They usually don't. They're nog being banned anyway. And even if they used Steam has the tools to 'know' who they are.
The old forums dealt with more toxic and complex trolls in their day. It's not a technical matter, it's a policy one.

Автор сообщения: Crashed

Автор сообщения: MA☝Omgwtfbbqstfu™

The real world test would say otherwise..
(snip)

That does not prove moderation is bad.

It only shows a bad attempt at substituting Twitter with a terribly intrusive app (up to the level of its release being delayed in the EU due to privacy concerns) which also jeopardizes your accounts in a different social site isn't taking off.

[Hesti]

Автор сообщения: Tito Shivan

Автор сообщения: Weimu

you've seen yourself a certain other user who purposefully makes alt accounts to ban evade and constantly troll in every discussion

The paid mods seem to have a really lenient approach to people creating alt accounts. It's a piece of feedback we tried very throughly to get to them, but whatever the book they're following to moderate it doesn't seem to be consistent on pursuing evading bans.

Which unfortunately has already taken a toll in the quality of the forums

Indeed. For about a week straight or so now, every other day, give or take, a group of 2-3 different alt accounts will show up and spam Off Topic with low effort posts, some of it racist or bigoted (there was a post saying hitler did nothing wrong that was quickly nuked, for example), and a lot of it sexual and creepy for whatever reason. There was another thread that got nuked very quickly making a very nasty comment about rape. But as far as I could tell that alt didn't even get banned and made a thread shortly after.

And like I said, this kind of thing has been going on for at least a week or more. 2-3 alts show up, spam a bit and get banned, silent for a day, then rinse and repeat. And I suspect (and many other OT users seem to suspect as well) that it's all the same person who's been repeatedly doing this.

In my opinion, OT has taken the biggest dive in quality ever since the paid mods especially because trolls and baitposters have noticed how the mods respond much slower on the weekends.

[Bamford]

Автор сообщения: Hesti

Автор сообщения: Tito Shivan

The paid mods seem to have a really lenient approach to people creating alt accounts. It's a piece of feedback we tried very throughly to get to them, but whatever the book they're following to moderate it doesn't seem to be consistent on pursuing evading bans.

Which unfortunately has already taken a toll in the quality of the forums

Indeed. For about a week straight or so now, every other day, give or take, a group of 2-3 different alt accounts will show up and spam Off Topic with low effort posts, some of it racist or bigoted (there was a post saying hitler did nothing wrong that was quickly nuked, for example), and a lot of it sexual and creepy for whatever reason. There was another thread that got nuked very quickly making a very nasty comment about rape. But as far as I could tell that alt didn't even get banned and made a thread shortly after.

And like I said, this kind of thing has been going on for at least a week or more. 2-3 alts show up, spam a bit and get banned, silent for a day, then rinse and repeat. And I suspect (and many other OT users seem to suspect as well) that it's all the same person who's been repeatedly doing this.

In my opinion, OT has taken the biggest dive in quality ever since the paid mods especially because trolls and baitposters have noticed how the mods respond much slower on the weekends.

You left out groomer posts.

Certain types fixation with gender and wearing a dress.

But this is how it is with selective concerns about "moderation".

[MA☝Omgwtfbbqstfu™]

Автор сообщения: Tito Shivan

Автор сообщения: Crashed

That does not prove moderation is bad.

It only shows a bad attempt at substituting Twitter with a terribly intrusive app (up to the level of its release being delayed in the EU due to privacy concerns) which also jeopardizes your accounts in a different social site isn't taking off.

It does prove its bad.

The average user is clueless about privacy, and instagram/iphone users clearly care the least. Privacy concerns and Zuckerberg platform are an absurdity.

They left because it was a desert of bland self promotion, even those claiming they fled for safety secretly loved the conflict on twitter.

And if one is so worried about alt accounts, only paid accounts should be able to post is the simple solution.

[Tito Shivan]

Автор сообщения: MA☝Omgwtfbbqstfu™

And if one is so worried about alt accounts, only paid accounts should be able to post is the simple solution.

When making policies one has to be careful not to throw the baby with the bathwater.

[VB Driver]

Автор сообщения: InnerPhoenix

valve allow this stuff is no surprise, over the past few years, forums have just got worse and worse, and valve imo has become one of those companies who doesn't care about something unless it inter fears with profits.

They care enough to ban anti-hateful, anti-dictatorship, pro-freedom people.

I was called a moron idiot on Overwatch 2 forums so I called him a furry (cause his profile tells so). I was banned for a day, he wasn't only because he's a russian.
Clearly Valve is on the side of trump, elon musk, cucker turdlson, ruSSia and other terrorist dips**ts.

[Crashed]

Автор сообщения: VB✠Driver

Автор сообщения: InnerPhoenix

valve allow this stuff is no surprise, over the past few years, forums have just got worse and worse, and valve imo has become one of those companies who doesn't care about something unless it inter fears with profits.

They care enough to ban anti-hateful, anti-dictatorship, pro-freedom people.

I was called a moron idiot on Overwatch 2 forums so I called him a furry (cause his profile tells so). I was banned for a day, he wasn't only because he's a russian.
Clearly Valve is on the side of trump, elon musk, cucker turdlson, ruSSia and other terrorist dips**ts.

More like a certain faction decides hate and harassment are part of their platform and thus intimidate moderators out of enforcing what were traditionally neutral rules.

[Loot Hunter]

Автор сообщения: VB✠Driver

I was called a moron idiot on Overwatch 2 forums so I called him a furry (cause his profile tells so). I was banned for a day, he wasn't only because he's a russian.

I'm not sure what is harder to believe - that a Russian guy was a furry, that a Russian guy wasn't banned, or that a Russian guy was on Overwatch 2 forum (since Blizzard games aren't available in Russia).

[Boblin the Goblin]

Автор сообщения: Crashed

Автор сообщения: VB✠Driver

They care enough to ban anti-hateful, anti-dictatorship, pro-freedom people.

I was called a moron idiot on Overwatch 2 forums so I called him a furry (cause his profile tells so). I was banned for a day, he wasn't only because he's a russian.
Clearly Valve is on the side of trump, elon musk, cucker turdlson, ruSSia and other terrorist dips**ts.

More like a certain faction decides hate and harassment are part of their platform and thus intimidate moderators out of enforcing what were traditionally neutral rules.

I love this conspiracy theory. It's like the 'Steam shadow cabal' one.

[QUAKETALLICA]

This lie of "hate speech" needs to die.

Hate Speech has a very specific definition: calling for acts of violence, and actual violence happening as a result.

Anything else is not hate speech.

In the 1970s, just a mere 30 years after WW2, there were a group of actual literal Nazis and white supremacists--not Republicans or right-wingers, actual literal neo-Nazis--who wanted to speak their vile ideas in the heart of a Jewish community, where actual Holocaust survivors lived.

You know who defended their right to speak? A leading attorney at the ACLU who was himself a Jew. His family was ostracized at their synagogue for their treason. But he knew that once some censorship is okay, all censorship is okay.

Could you imagine the ACLU of today standing up for free speech like that?

The story's not really relevant to Steam since this is a private organization, but I detest this false notion of "hate speech" as an excuse to censor distasteful speech.

[QUAKETALLICA]

Автор сообщения: MA☝Omgwtfbbqstfu™

We've seen the reality of what is demanded, selective suppression of dissent, convenient interpretations of offenses, none of the words mean what they are meant to mean.

You have a block button, participation in forums is not just voluntary but requires active engagement. Its clear these calls aren't about stalking behavior which is understandably something to ban, but instead these are attempts to suppress the mere existence of things which are not to their personal taste.

Couldn't agree more.

This is why censorship of chat in online multiplayer games puzzles me too. It's like, there's a mute button. You can hide the text chat. You don't have to endure the crap if it gets too obnoxious for you. But why silence everybody from speaking at all? It's like nuking the city of San Francisco to deal with a minor ant infestation in your Bay Area home. A little overkill.

[peppermint hollows]

Автор сообщения: QUAKETALLICA

This lie of "hate speech" needs to die.

Hate Speech has a very specific definition: calling for acts of violence, and actual violence happening as a result.

Anything else is not hate speech.

In the 1970s, just a mere 30 years after WW2, there were a group of actual literal Nazis and white supremacists--not Republicans or right-wingers, actual literal neo-Nazis--who wanted to speak their vile ideas in the heart of a Jewish community, where actual Holocaust survivors lived.

You know who defended their right to speak? A leading attorney at the ACLU who was himself a Jew. His family was ostracized at their synagogue for their treason. But he knew that once some censorship is okay, all censorship is okay.

Could you imagine the ACLU of today standing up for free speech like that?

The story's not really relevant to Steam since this is a private organization, but I detest this false notion of "hate speech" as an excuse to censor distasteful speech.

Ah yes, tolerating Nazis has famously always lead to good outcomes.

[John Cena]

i think it depends on what moderators are working on what day. i had a guy call me a "fake rice man" clearly a racist term and i reported him but nothing was done. valve really needs to re-evaluate their relationship with the current moderating company.

[D. Flame]

Автор сообщения: QUAKETALLICA

This lie of "hate speech" needs to die.

Hate Speech has a very specific definition: calling for acts of violence, and actual violence happening as a result.

Anything else is not hate speech.

Wrong. Hate speech is, and has always been, more than just calls for violence.