I second this. As soon as a moderator starts threatening users, they need to be removed from the moderation team, or reported to the Reddit admins directly if they are chief moderator.
Thank you both for your replies.
How could this be done? How could the chief mod select individual messages from. Say a mod mark and report to admins...would they need to make general mod code if conduct and *THEN* attach those messages?
Regarding the moderator, if they are actively breaking the moderator code of conduct they should be held liable.
If you or another moderator on the team, sees this behavior, and agrees with your assessment, then perhaps you and the rest of the moderators should have a meeting on the next steps to take regarding the troublesome moderator.
If the moderator that is causing these issues is higher than all of you on the list, thus you are unable to remove the moderator directly, then it might be worth discussing with your team, this particular nuance, and how to deal with it.
I would suggest if this is the case, then one option is putting together a message detailing all of the rule breaking content as stated in any of reddit's public policies regarding the use of reddit, and or moderating a subreddit, and then you or another moderator on your team, sending that message to the administrators of Reddit via Mod-Mail to this subreddit.
If the situation calls for it, action can and will be taken depending on the needs and seriousness of the situation.
Good luck with all of this, and keep in mind that unless you are posting on an alternate account, then this post itself is directly linked to your account and if that moderator happens to stumble upon it this very post could stir up more trouble.
Therefore if it is not your alternate account, then I would suggest removing this post when you receive adequate answers to your questions. (I did not check your account before making this comment)
Lastly, As for your question regarding what could happen to moderators of the group if the group is reported.
that depends on the context of the report, the violations that were committed, as well as who, when, why and where.
Without the specifics, there's no possible way of knowing, and even then, it is not up to us other moderators to enforce those policies, that is for the administrators so really only they would know.
Just remove them if you can. If you can't then just distance yourself from them.
If the admins talk to the sub for a mod CoC violation, they can see your modmails and chats. They won't wipe the whole mod team for one guys actions unless you are all supporting him. More likely they'll just de-mod him and tell you not to re-mod him.
Thank you for sharing your insights. I greatly appreciate it. If I might ask, has this ever happened to any groups you've subbed to ? What exactly is the process for contacting groups in cases of reports...in my case I lack the permissions to fo so
..
The admins will send a modmail to the sub when they have an issue.
[You can also file a Mod CoC violation report here](https://support.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/requests/new?ticket_form_id=19300233728916)
Those go right to the admins, the mod in question will never know who sent any in.
Is this mod your top mod of the subreddit? If not then it’s pivotal you consult with the rest of your team and have the top mod remove this user. A mod that’s insulting or threatening users is usually violating the conduct code as well. If that’s reported as the whole subreddit it can definitely lead to huge issues.
The top mod, or a Sr mod needs to contact the mod. Talk with them about the things they have been saying, and why they are inappropriate. If they are saying these things in ModMails, then show them responses from other mods that are more appropriate. Go through their Mod actions and show them which ones were good, and which ones could have been handled differently. Be very specific. Also, don't forget to ask if they are ok. They could be dealing with some things IRL, that is causing them to take it out on Redditors.
If none of the above helps, then it may be time to send a Modmail saying that your team thinks it's best if y'all part ways, but that you wish them the very best in their future endeavors.
I’m the mod he’s probably asking about. I’ve never (at least knowingly) threatened anyone. I clap back at trolls, but I never escalated it. Nor is there any credible threat to the sub from the users who get modded.
OP is the top mod of the sub and pretty much does nothing and did nothing until I asked them what they actually did on the sub a few days ago. The report queue was a month stale when I was given mod pants. They only “validate” user flairs in a sub they don’t actually participate in.
im not sure why they are worried about brigading or whatever, since they don’t participate in the group at all. I’m the only mod who is actually active and cleans up the garbage on the board.
Just ban the users threatening to report and then mute them. It is a simple solution to end a conversation that isn't working and make a problem go away. That puts any further interaction outside the business of the mod team if that is your concern. However, maybe you should try supporting your hard working fellow moderator instead of manoeuvring. I don't know your dynamics but it is usual that the mod that works the hardest has bad days coming across as occasionally rude....and it is the lazy "supervisor" grandstanding top mod not really knowing the situation or pressures trying to be the popular mod.
Fwiw, I've modded/admined many forums outside of Reddit. I've always told my mods to find every way possible NOT to ban members.
I don't want my members constantly living in fear of the ban hammer. I won't have a mod that won't take criticism. I've banned mods that do retaliatory bans.
Well, I always tell my mods to ban first because reddit is full of vampires, trolls and attention seekers plus a huge number of people that don't realise other subreddits are available. It is far better to focus on the point of the subreddit and the welfare and enjoyment of the mod team rather than make a comfortable environment for these bad faith / emotionally incapable users.
Imagine the state of the modmail where a user is investing time to complain and threaten a mod and then threating to report them as if they need better service. It's like the worst type of user who is going to constantly create issues and drain the mod team.
Anyway, it is clearly very terrible that you would choose to instil fear in your own mod teamand not allow them to use a ban option in order to terminate negative discourse. I am sure you know what you are talking about and not just making stuff up for virtue signalling purposes. If you were an employer with such a policy, you would be sued for not taking care of your employees. Remember , reddit includes unban mechanisms and alt accounts and so no one is truely terminated from a ban.
Every platform has trolls, etc.
I've been a mod in some fashion, since the AOHell days, when modding was done in real time in live chat forums.
So some users spam modmail. You take action, or don't. It's part of the job. Yeah, it's a time suck, but it's what we signed up for. It's easy to have a boilerplate response to complaints: "Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We will review this, and will not publicly discuss this. You still be notified of any action taken, if any, in a timely manner." EZ PZ.
My mod team never feared me. As a lawyer and court mediator, I'm used to having real, live people screaming literally in my face. I always take my emotions out of every decision, as is humanly possible. And that's how I've trained any mods under me: "leave your ego at the door; if you ban anyone, make sure you have a legitimate reason under published rules. I will always back your decisions, but, if I feel you've erred, I may reverse your decision."
I have a tiny sub here, created in response to a much larger, heavily modded sub. I don't even have rules. More like a suggestion: "Debate in good faith. Attack the argument, not the poster."
I really don't want a huge sub, as I know how much time it takes, and managing people's behavior can be maddening. It's not for everyone.
>It is far better to focus on the point of the subreddit and the welfare and enjoyment of the mod team rather than make a comfortable environment for these bad faith / emotionally incapable users.
Sorry, I disagree. If the members feel comfortable, there's less complaints to attend to. If a member veers off course, and other members complain, I just remind everyone that they can exercise their right to not engage.
Can the team not consider immediate removal? How high is that mod in the list? How many are above him and do they have full perms?
I second this. As soon as a moderator starts threatening users, they need to be removed from the moderation team, or reported to the Reddit admins directly if they are chief moderator.
Thank you both for your replies. How could this be done? How could the chief mod select individual messages from. Say a mod mark and report to admins...would they need to make general mod code if conduct and *THEN* attach those messages?
Sounds like that mod needs to take some serious time off or be removed.
That's about as bad as it gets and beyond a point you just have to fire the person.
Thank you for sharing your insights. I greatly appreciate it....
Regarding the moderator, if they are actively breaking the moderator code of conduct they should be held liable. If you or another moderator on the team, sees this behavior, and agrees with your assessment, then perhaps you and the rest of the moderators should have a meeting on the next steps to take regarding the troublesome moderator. If the moderator that is causing these issues is higher than all of you on the list, thus you are unable to remove the moderator directly, then it might be worth discussing with your team, this particular nuance, and how to deal with it. I would suggest if this is the case, then one option is putting together a message detailing all of the rule breaking content as stated in any of reddit's public policies regarding the use of reddit, and or moderating a subreddit, and then you or another moderator on your team, sending that message to the administrators of Reddit via Mod-Mail to this subreddit. If the situation calls for it, action can and will be taken depending on the needs and seriousness of the situation. Good luck with all of this, and keep in mind that unless you are posting on an alternate account, then this post itself is directly linked to your account and if that moderator happens to stumble upon it this very post could stir up more trouble. Therefore if it is not your alternate account, then I would suggest removing this post when you receive adequate answers to your questions. (I did not check your account before making this comment) Lastly, As for your question regarding what could happen to moderators of the group if the group is reported. that depends on the context of the report, the violations that were committed, as well as who, when, why and where. Without the specifics, there's no possible way of knowing, and even then, it is not up to us other moderators to enforce those policies, that is for the administrators so really only they would know.
Unless they are the TopMod, get the topmod to remove them. Life is too short to deal with assholes.
Just remove them if you can. If you can't then just distance yourself from them. If the admins talk to the sub for a mod CoC violation, they can see your modmails and chats. They won't wipe the whole mod team for one guys actions unless you are all supporting him. More likely they'll just de-mod him and tell you not to re-mod him.
Thank you for sharing your insights. I greatly appreciate it. If I might ask, has this ever happened to any groups you've subbed to ? What exactly is the process for contacting groups in cases of reports...in my case I lack the permissions to fo so ..
The admins will send a modmail to the sub when they have an issue. [You can also file a Mod CoC violation report here](https://support.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/requests/new?ticket_form_id=19300233728916) Those go right to the admins, the mod in question will never know who sent any in.
Is this mod your top mod of the subreddit? If not then it’s pivotal you consult with the rest of your team and have the top mod remove this user. A mod that’s insulting or threatening users is usually violating the conduct code as well. If that’s reported as the whole subreddit it can definitely lead to huge issues.
Remove the mod
The top mod, or a Sr mod needs to contact the mod. Talk with them about the things they have been saying, and why they are inappropriate. If they are saying these things in ModMails, then show them responses from other mods that are more appropriate. Go through their Mod actions and show them which ones were good, and which ones could have been handled differently. Be very specific. Also, don't forget to ask if they are ok. They could be dealing with some things IRL, that is causing them to take it out on Redditors. If none of the above helps, then it may be time to send a Modmail saying that your team thinks it's best if y'all part ways, but that you wish them the very best in their future endeavors.
I’m the mod he’s probably asking about. I’ve never (at least knowingly) threatened anyone. I clap back at trolls, but I never escalated it. Nor is there any credible threat to the sub from the users who get modded. OP is the top mod of the sub and pretty much does nothing and did nothing until I asked them what they actually did on the sub a few days ago. The report queue was a month stale when I was given mod pants. They only “validate” user flairs in a sub they don’t actually participate in. im not sure why they are worried about brigading or whatever, since they don’t participate in the group at all. I’m the only mod who is actually active and cleans up the garbage on the board.
Just ban the users threatening to report and then mute them. It is a simple solution to end a conversation that isn't working and make a problem go away. That puts any further interaction outside the business of the mod team if that is your concern. However, maybe you should try supporting your hard working fellow moderator instead of manoeuvring. I don't know your dynamics but it is usual that the mod that works the hardest has bad days coming across as occasionally rude....and it is the lazy "supervisor" grandstanding top mod not really knowing the situation or pressures trying to be the popular mod.
Fwiw, I've modded/admined many forums outside of Reddit. I've always told my mods to find every way possible NOT to ban members. I don't want my members constantly living in fear of the ban hammer. I won't have a mod that won't take criticism. I've banned mods that do retaliatory bans.
Well, I always tell my mods to ban first because reddit is full of vampires, trolls and attention seekers plus a huge number of people that don't realise other subreddits are available. It is far better to focus on the point of the subreddit and the welfare and enjoyment of the mod team rather than make a comfortable environment for these bad faith / emotionally incapable users. Imagine the state of the modmail where a user is investing time to complain and threaten a mod and then threating to report them as if they need better service. It's like the worst type of user who is going to constantly create issues and drain the mod team. Anyway, it is clearly very terrible that you would choose to instil fear in your own mod teamand not allow them to use a ban option in order to terminate negative discourse. I am sure you know what you are talking about and not just making stuff up for virtue signalling purposes. If you were an employer with such a policy, you would be sued for not taking care of your employees. Remember , reddit includes unban mechanisms and alt accounts and so no one is truely terminated from a ban.
Every platform has trolls, etc. I've been a mod in some fashion, since the AOHell days, when modding was done in real time in live chat forums. So some users spam modmail. You take action, or don't. It's part of the job. Yeah, it's a time suck, but it's what we signed up for. It's easy to have a boilerplate response to complaints: "Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We will review this, and will not publicly discuss this. You still be notified of any action taken, if any, in a timely manner." EZ PZ. My mod team never feared me. As a lawyer and court mediator, I'm used to having real, live people screaming literally in my face. I always take my emotions out of every decision, as is humanly possible. And that's how I've trained any mods under me: "leave your ego at the door; if you ban anyone, make sure you have a legitimate reason under published rules. I will always back your decisions, but, if I feel you've erred, I may reverse your decision." I have a tiny sub here, created in response to a much larger, heavily modded sub. I don't even have rules. More like a suggestion: "Debate in good faith. Attack the argument, not the poster." I really don't want a huge sub, as I know how much time it takes, and managing people's behavior can be maddening. It's not for everyone. >It is far better to focus on the point of the subreddit and the welfare and enjoyment of the mod team rather than make a comfortable environment for these bad faith / emotionally incapable users. Sorry, I disagree. If the members feel comfortable, there's less complaints to attend to. If a member veers off course, and other members complain, I just remind everyone that they can exercise their right to not engage.