Should bans be public?

[Cedric]

How should we handle banned users on our forums? Some forums choose to make it crystal clear in a user's profile when they've been banned and display it on every post they've ever made. Others prefer to quietly remove the offending users without any public announcement. Which approach do you prefer, and why?

Public Visibility:

1. Transparency and Deterrence: One argument for publicly displaying a banned user's status is that it can serve as a deterrent for others. When people see the consequences of certain behaviors, it might discourage them from engaging in similar activities.
2. Accountability: It holds the banned user accountable for their actions. By publicly acknowledging their ban, it sends a message that inappropriate behavior won't be tolerated.
3. Community Awareness: Some argue that it's essential for the community to know when someone has been banned, as it helps maintain trust and transparency within the forum.

Private Handling:

1. Privacy and Rehabilitation: Those in favor of discretion believe that publicly displaying a user's ban can be embarrassing and potentially counterproductive. They argue that some users can learn from their mistakes and return as valuable members after rehabilitation.
2. Avoiding Drama: Keeping it private helps avoid unnecessary drama and conflicts that may arise when the community becomes aware of a ban. It can help maintain a more positive and peaceful atmosphere.
3. Moderation Decision: Supporters of this approach argue that the decision to ban a user should be left to the moderators, and they should have the discretion to handle it privately if they believe it's in the best interest of the forum.

Communication with the Community:

Another aspect to consider is how forums communicate with the community about bans. Do you believe it's important to inform the community of why a person was banned if someone asks? Or is it better to keep the details confidential? Share your thoughts on how much information should be disclosed when explaining bans.

Let's have a respectful and open discussion about this. What are your personal preferences, and how do you handle banned users on your forums? Have you encountered any benefits or drawbacks to your chosen approach?

 

[Darth Cognus]

I've seen it work perfectly fine both ways in terms of how transparent the process is, so the conclusion would be that it's whatever is best for one's moderating style and the community at hand. What I have seen go wrong is extremes especially in high profile cases. It's highly immature to blare out and overtly call attention to every ban, I mean outright announcing and drawing attention to it (yes I've seen it), but sometimes you've gotta say something even if it's very little for privacy's sake, because being evasive can cause damage. In general I believe it should be a confidential matter but if the banned party wants to make it public, then deal with it expediently and in a funnel ie, don't make it front page business.

I do think if someone is banned then something to the effect of suspended or permanently suspended on their profile at least is warranted, it would not do to be the admin who has banned someone and the evidence points to it being shadowy on top of whatever the banned user is saying. It is what it is, settle it, and move on to better things. Moderation history beyond that is not the public's interest unless it's volunteered by the banned party (which includes things like deliberate shit stirring). Though again this not to the point of being evasive.

It goes well with a process that is strongly oriented towards giving warnings and using bans very carefully, so it is more apparent when action is taken that it was taken for something rather serious.

 

[Joeychgo]

I keep all disciplinary stuff private for several reasons. First, it isn't really anyone else's business. Second, I don't really want to get into a public debate with other members over if I should have or shouldn't have taken the action .

 

[Ravenfreak]

I just place banned accounts in a banned group. Of course with spammers I just outright delete their accounts, but that's different. The user's posts don't get deleted either, I think it shows new members basically what not to do when posting on the forums and they can look at the banned member's post history just to see why they were banned.

 

[Empire]

I mentioned this elsewhere and I believe and think it should be in-house and not go outside, keep it to only the staff and members should not need to know. At times the person who got banned might not want to share either.

even on other sites, right, if one person gets banned on site A doesn't mean that the information should be shared with other sites.

 

[Cory]

I don't think the reason for the ban should be given to members. I think that is to remain confidential between the staff and the member who got banned. Revealing why they were banned seems to be a way just to make them feel worse about why they were banned and publicly humiliate them for their actions. Some bans may be unjustifiable in some people's eyes while others may think the opposite, so you could have arguments about why someone was banned if you were to make it public. But in the end, the staff get the total say in who is banned and for what reason.

If other members were to ask me why a user was banned I would essentially tell them it's none of their business and remains to be known only to the staff and the member involved.

 

[Clarice]

In the past, I have had to ban someone and then they would turn around and lie about why it happened. They would claim I did it for no reason and they want sympathy.

 

[Dismal_Bliss]

We put them in a Banned membergroup so that it says "Banned" under their avatar. But we don't publish why a person was banned.

But it basically comes down to we have a Membership Policy, and the member was violating that policy and didn't respond to counsel to stop.

 

[~ True Legend ~]

In the past, I have had to ban someone and then they would turn around and lie about why it happened. They would claim I did it for no reason and they want sympathy.

After a temporary ban or did they evade the ban to do so?

 

[Clarice]

In their mind, they feel I shouldn't have banned them at all. The person attempted to overthrow me on my own board.

 

[Sinistra]

I don't think the reason for the ban should be given to members....

I agree usually when I ban someone I will put in their profile that they were banned for violating our guidelines. Honestly, that's all they need to know. But you have to take into account the gossipers. The ones that will non-saliently ask staff about the situation. Usually, if they are friends with that staff member, the staff member will be like "Oh they got banned for bullying." This in turn opens up another can of worms. Now you have a member that knows what happened. This member will tell their friends, and so on. Now your whole community knows.

I as an admin have some strict guidelines for being a staff member. I even send a PM to the member I want to promote the rules and they have to agree to them before becoming a staff member. One of these rules is leaking info to nonstaff members. A first offense of this will get you put on probation for a time frame that I find acceptable depending on what was leaked. A second offense will be a demotion to a lower staff level. admin to super mod, super mod to mod, mod to retired staff (that still has some access to staff forum). The third and final would be a complete demotion to whatever member group you would fall in due to post count. Keeping stuff like this private is a good idea. but you want to let your members know you aren't just going to let someone get away with violating your rules. So what would you as an admin do in this situation? Do you set strict rules for your staff to follow? or do you just leave it to chance?

 

[Bluezone777]

I made all of my two bans I ever issued on boards I owned public with a thread posted to allow public discourse and questioning over it. Why I do this you might ask? Simply put, people are going to want to know what happened and why. It allows friends of the banned person to get the full truth on the matter and to build trust between you and your community. It's also to clearly show you aren't above being questioned and the need for such a serious action to be justified.

I see banning someone from a community a serious matter and take the entirety of the action itself and the aftermath it produces very seriously. I don't like banning people nor do I really want to but will if the situation demands it. I much rather work out issues with words rather then mod tools as while the task of doing such is harder but the rewards for successfully doing it far outweigh any work you have to put it to make it happen.

 

[ZandraJoi]

I do not believe in public shaming at all. I’ve seen on some forums a member publicly humiliated but it was the OWNER or STAFF that had the disagreement. The member just didn’t click with said forum so they were ousted.
Same reason I don’t believe in gossip. One member may not like somebody & they have that right, but they do NOT have the right to slander a person for a personal belief.
There are many reasons for a ban & it should stay between the banned member & Staff.
Now, spammers are different. I have helped share a list with other owners & vice versa.

 

[Shortie]

When it comes to a ban on a forum, I have always been someone who is against it going public and should be kept between the staff members and any forum members who may be involved in the banning and the reason for it.

I feel that openly outing a ban can lead to a lot of issues that would have otherwise been avoided.

 

[Heatman]

As far as I'm concerned, it's not necessary to start making it public why a particular member was banned. It's too much drama and it's not necessary. Once the forum's rules, regulations and policy was applied before banning a member, I'll sleep better in my bed without any hitch.

 

[Alex]

Bans or account restrictions should remain private. By private, I am referring to only those with a need to know basis - most the moderation team and administrators. Otherwise it could potentially damage their reputation.

 

[Miraizar]

I think my stance is "it depends".

I think most cases can be private. But if it happens to a well-known member, then I'd be more inclined to make it public.

If you think not talking about a ban of a well-known member will prevent gossip, you're wrong. And by not saying anything, you're allowing for the opportunity for other people to make up words for you. Especially in a case like Clarice mentioned where you're dealing with a toxic member who wants to fracture your community by getting people to take sides.

Edit: I might also be inclined to say something about a member if someone contacts me about it or I see people talking about them, depending on how well known the member is or where the concerns come from. Because like a cockroach, if I see one conversation, there's probably more going on unseen.

I do think the one benefit of making all bans public is then you can just have a thread you update, which kind of takes the wind out of any "big cases" as it's just more downplayed and normalized.

 

[Kennysplash]

It should be made public, as that would serve as a deterrent for potential rule breakers. If they have any reputation to uphold in the first place they would not go against the rules and regulations of the forum.

 

[JoshB]

My thoughts on this would be that I would simply privately tell them on the reason why they're being banned from the forum. It's not the business of the other members of the community to know why and eventually it'll get around anyway. I treat it like talking to an employee in that praise should be public but, punishments are private.

 

[ten thousand]

I'm of the firm opinion that all moderation should be done publicly and in the open, with the usual disclaimer of "your mileage may vary" and "not all communities have the same needs" etc.

In any social context you're going to have an imbalance of power. If you want to build a culture where power is trusted and respected by those without it then the use of that power needs to be public for all to see: make all moderator logs public, make all bans and ban reasons public.

Holding the staff accountable for their actions is not just the founder's job. It's the job of the whole community. They should have the tools they need to do so.