[Archived] Has this community lost its community spirit?

[Ricky]

This is a topic that keeps getting raised on other threads, maybe it's something we need to resolve and get on top of before it's too late.

This messageboard used to be a great community. I've travelled abroad and roomed with members of this site, I've sat on a bus in lithuania for 8 hours with members of this site, I've been to the player of the year awards as a guest of a member of this site, I've played football in Salzburg with members of this site, I've had many a drunken curry in Darwen with members of this site, I've walked through Cologne at 4am eating cakes with members of this site, got smashed on Jaegar pre Man City away with members of this site, arranged for a fellow member's son to be a mascot at a game...... they've put me up for nights when I've been stranded, they've bought me beers when I've ran out of cash, they've just basicaly been friends, very good friends indeed.

Now I see less and less of them posting on here, is it becasue we're all getting older, is it because the football's not so good anymore, or is it because the whole atmosphere on here has changed?

This week has probably been the worst week for people sniping and generally bitching. What's changed, what has made the forum such a difficult place for people to be able to come and speak their mind without getting jumped on by all and sundry.

More importantly how do we solve it? do we start getting heavy handed and banning people as soon as there is the slightest hint of an insult or do members just regulate themselves better and try to cut other members a bit of slack?

I'm interested to know how people think we should move forward.

[majorstyre]

everybody is entitled to an opinion, whether others like it or not

and i think the forum should allow that

i dont agree with the personal insults if people dont agree with what is being said

at the end of the day we are all supporters together

[alexanders]

Its a modern day problem. Lack of respect and politeness.

[Andy]

I think too many trolls or wannabe internet hardmen being provocative for the sake of it.

Despite this, there is still a number of good, intelligent and educated posters who know how to both convey their own, and listen to others', opinions.

[Stuart]

I think sometimes, things just change.

I do have a theory that the advent of smart phones has changed the posting style. With people much more inclined to make a quick text-type post in a "fire and forget" style. The small keys don't make for a good way to compose long posts. This means that people don't write as much and so you don't get a proper feel for people. As a result, a lot of posts can be miscontrued and before you know it, a throw-away remark can lead to a big argument. So much so that people then think "get lost then I'm not going to explain myself to you".

There is a lot to be said for the ability for people to compose readable posts though. It would be good if people made more of an effort to think about the point they are trying to make and the way they write it before clicking that post button. Myself included at times...

And sometimes banter can go horribly wrong, especially if you think you have a rapport with someone and deliberately or accidentally leave out a smiley!

[broadsword]

Too much point-scoring and back-biting going on.

Not nice.

[Amo]

The problem's communication.

Too much communication.

[Al]

The problem is too many cocky new posters driving the old ones away. The only way is to jump on them immediately and after one warning ban them. At the moment this site is being ruined by a few of them. I don't need to name them. We all know who they are.

[moerpho]

I genuinely think this site should turn into paid-for membership. While a simple and ruthless solution I believe it would solve a lot of problems.

First and foremost I agree with this sentiment as I truly miss "the old days" (5-10 years ago), and would gladly pay to be a member. I was only a lurker/reader back then, mainly because I felt the standard was so high I didn't dare to post unless I felt had something relevant to contribute. The banter used to be really good as well and more often than not gave me chuckle.

Then came Nicko and the "nickoteens", downtimes due to server load and several old & good posters disappeared over disputes with particulary Nicko and his followers. I admit I got swept up in the frenzy myself at the time. After Nicko disappeared the board sort of died for a period of time with not many active posters, but then came Venkys, BRAG, BRSIT etc and the whole place went into meltdown.

I really miss being able to come on here and get some good info on everything from game analyses (sp?), bits and pieces of information about the goings on at Ewood, transfers and just "all-things-blackburn-rovers". BRFCS used to be one of the first sites I checked during my morning coffee - now I just skim through most threads as there rarely is much info inbetween all the fighting. For info on the club that is not in the papers (yet) I now usually use twitterfeeds (kamy etc) which is all well and good, but the short messages on twitter will never fully replace the wide spectrum a good messagboard can deliver.

I think the backbone of a good messagboard is still here. Lots of good posters and some truly nice people albeit with strong opinions.....as it should be. Too bad all the fighting disrupts what used to be my nr.1 source for all things Blackburn Rovers. Apart from making this a subscription service I can only think of two other solutions unless posters are willing to show some restraint, humility and start behaving:

1. Short-time bans for personal attacks etc (i.e. no warnings)

2. Creating a "Fight!" section and move all those off-topic posts dedicated to telling someone else they are and imbecile etc there

Problem is neither are realistic as it would probably mean mods would have no spare time for family or work, and it really shouldn't be necessary to play "thought police" on a football messagboard. Perhaps the creation of this thread would help?

[Al]

I would gladly pay for membership if it meant a return to the site as it was and maybe it would be a good idea to contact some old members and invite them back. New members should need a proposer to join.

[speeeeeeedie]

I have been posting on here for nearly 10 years now and have seen a difference.

The club being a disaster is a large portion of it. The instability fuels angst which transfers over to posts. When Mark Hughes was boss it felt good as we spent a large amount of time discussing trips to Europe, beating the big boys, cup semi finals, finding hidden gems. Even under the end of Souness the club was stable and we knew it would work out. Ince's appointment was a watershed moment.

I think some of it is cultural. I was born and brought up in East Lancs but don't in the UK anymore. When I do venture home now I do see marked difference in how people act. There is far more aggression around. Even my family who still lives at home notice it. This too spills over onto here.

Information saturation is another one. People want info rapidly, and they hang until they either get more, or validate what they predicted.

[Athlete]

Those days were the best remember the Ankara, Sofia, Celtic trips as if they were yesterday.... Ankara a lot of info was shared on this site hotels, travel tips, etc ;-)

[Tom]

Now about a two month probation period for new posters?

I'm a relative newcomer in real terms but offered to help out Glenn and Ste and the mods a couple of years back, when my son was born I was up a lot in the middle of the night naturally and had quite a lot of spam posts at the time, it was also when Nicko was posting and the transfer threads were a nightmare.

We don't like to ban people for little reason and in reality very few people are ever banned for good, it takes a relatively strong offence to get permananned but I would be in favour of bringing back more shorter bans as a warning shot

[Baz]

Not sure on either the paying or the nominated entry thing, can lead to accusations of being a "closed shop". Plus we often get visitors from fans of other clubs who are good to have around.

Personally Id go for limiting the number of posts you can make. This would help people think about their responses more, or just stop them overwhelimg every thread.

Id also try to stamp down on the personal abuse, but at times to me that only Tom seems to be doing any moderating, and he must get fed up of all the abuse he must get plus time he has to spend sorting out petty squabbles.

I just think people should try to move the debate along, more than having a go. Other people are allowed a different opinion.

[K-Hod]

Some new (not all, some very good new ones) posters and their content of late epitomise exactly why the Internet giving everyone a voice isn't necessarily a good thing.

[Al]

Once they are banned the problem goes away.

[T4E]

It's always been pretty cliquey - if you know and get on with the more long term contributors you'll enjoy it here, particularly if the team is doing well.

If you're new/far away/outside for any other reason then it won't be as fun.

When I used to attend games I'd meet people and usually get on very well with them all. Now I don't attend games it's different. Personally I think the place gets much better once you meet the members face to face. A successful team makes that all the better. Rovers are on a downward curve, so as a result so is the messageboard. 'twas ever thus.

[Tom]

Id also try to stamp down on the personal abuse, but at times to me that only Tom seems to be doing any moderating,.

Don't worry I can promise you that isn't true I just be more obvious about it (probably a bad thing after all the sign of a good referee is one that isn't noticed)

We tend to hide posts in threads to keep them moving, we will never ever edit a post (except in one case in which the error was admitted to) and only as a last resort lock the thread

It can get annoying as recently I removed 3 full pages worth of bickering between the same 4 or 5 people

[arbitro]

The whole concept is fine whereby fans can discuss all things Rovers. Sadly too many WUM's (I hate that expression by the way) and provocative posts have a detrimental effect on quite a few I think. A difference of opinion is fine but the aggressive and insulting nature of some posters makes me think if it is worth the effort.

[Mike E]

I quite like the face-to-face thought mentioned by T4E. Maybe casual meet-ups could be organised at local venues like the Darwen Golf or Cricket clubs? Or even just at Ewood's BluesBar?

[JAL]

I have been posting on here for nearly 10 years now and have seen a difference.

The club being a disaster is a large portion of it. The instability fuels angst which transfers over to posts. When Mark Hughes was boss it felt good as we spent a large amount of time discussing trips to Europe, beating the big boys, cup semi finals, finding hidden gems. Even under the end of Souness the club was stable and we knew it would work out. Ince's appointment was a watershed moment.

I think some of it is cultural. I was born and brought up in East Lancs but don't in the UK anymore. When I do venture home now I do see marked difference in how people act. There is far more aggression around. Even my family who still lives at home notice it. This too spills over onto here.

Information saturation is another one. People want info rapidly, and they hang until they either get more, or validate what they predicted.

Think we need to throw in that the economy is failing for many around here, thus, more pressure on individuals. Add to this that their team isnt doing too well, throw in a few fellow supporters having a pop at their idols and it all begins to build up too much for some to take .

A successful Rovers would surely go along way to easing a lot of this poster v poster tension and create a more positive environment for Rovers fans all over.

[ihtd]

This MB used to be essential reading 4-5 years ago. Now all it has become is a forum for people to snipe & one-up one another and it has driven the more intellectual, more interesting posters away.

I, like Ricky, have had some awesome times with people from this MB. Feyenoord away, playing at Ewood thanks to Ricky alongside SAS, away days, being given tickets by Paul to the Man City home game on the last day of the 05/06 season to name a few.

The poor quality of many posters and the constant need to filter through arguments has led to long term posters like myself finding better things to do on an evening/weekend. It is a shame as this community (and it really were a community) was something I was proud to belong to. Now I just read occasionally and seldom log in to post.

[Guest Norbert]

I second ihtd's post. It seems some here (and I won't name those who I think do this as it won't help matters) either want to give it large about their standing, their 'knowledge' or just come on and try to knock people down. I admit, I've had a go at a few on occaision, so I am not innocent, but a few make it a 'lifestyle choice' to slag others off, give it the big man act and/or generally act like nobbers. The one upmanship, or the 'you are stupid because you don't believe me' comments ruin this site. It says a lot when one of the better posters is actually a dingle.

[Stuart]

This MB used to be essential reading 4-5 years ago.

That time frame exactly fits with our last real 'good times'. Can't be coincidence.

Some good points made on this thread. Perhaps he didn't go about it in the right way but maybe Sax does finally have us all taking a look at ourselves.

Sadly all it would take is another Sax-type and we'd be off again...

[DE.]

The club being in a state of serious decline is always going to hamper spirit amongst supporters, especially when divides have broken out between the likes of BRFCAG/The Trust/Protesters/Non-Protesters, etc etc... there's an increasing "us and them" mentality between our own supporters which makes it very difficult to even attempt to find common ground.

The site is also hampered by weak moderation and the allowance of trolls and turbo-posters to absolutely ruin threads and debates. A message board is not a democracy, if somebody is quite obviously detracting from the overall quality of threads then something should be done. Whilst eventually something is done, it seems to take forever for moderators here to take action which is very frustrating. This is the only forum I visit which allows such blatant WUM's to incessantly spam the board with no obvious reprimand for prolonged periods. I'm not suggesting heavy handed moderation, but some really obvious trolls are not cracked down on quickly enough. I appreciate being a mod is a voluntary position, though, so whilst I do criticise it's only because this is an obvious problem. I don't necessarily expect or demand anything be done, it would just improve the quality of the site for action to be taken swiftly and with conviction.

As an aside, 70% of the board claiming to be "ITK" hasn't exactly helped matters either.