(crossposted from my discussion starter at the StopCyberbullying community)
Dave Winer has a great post up today about how mob mentality can hurt, or even destroy careers here.
He says:
“So if we have a code of conduct, it can’t just talk about how trolls behave, because truly we have no control over that. It should talk about responsible people whose names we know with reputations they care about — what should they do when abuse happens? That is something we can do something about. There should be 18 steps before something like Kathy Sierra’s post appears in the midst of the blogosphere, and it shouldn’t come from teh person who has been victimized, someone else should stand up for them and explain what happened. For so many reasons this is a much better way to go, and I’m sure the victim would like it better too (I speak from experience).
You know there’s nothing worse than being hunted and having no one care enough to speak up for you. That’s what we need to work on folks.”
I couldn’t agree with him more — this follows what Liz Ditz also said about this week’s events.
So what are those steps that Dave talks about, specifically. When do we let people bicker and when do we stand up and tell them they’ve crossed the line? What consequences should come from that?
Also see:
- Identity and Heinous Behavior (this shocked me even as I thought I couldn’t be shocked more than I was)
- Tim O’Reilly’s call for a Bloggers’ Code of Conduct (I already have one — click the “Blog Principles” link at the top of any page to read it, though it does need to be updated to remove the language about blogging under a pseudonym)
- Doc Searls’ post of Alan Herrell’s email where he reveals that his identity has been stolen (make that “hijacked) by a malicious hacker.
Is there a technology aspect that could be implemented? I don’t mean filters, necessarily, but perhaps some way of voluntarily establishing/and or securing one’s identity and adopting an ethical code voluntarily (similar to the blog principles I referred to) that would weight the words of those who do so as more credible?
Technorati Tags: stopcyberbullying, Dave Winer, blogs, blogging, Kathy Sierra, ethics, blog principles
