Disappearing contributors - part 2

The person Annie the moderator described and all the things she had done wrong was not Allira I m really wondering if they are mixing her up with another poster but how can that be
Gransnet please come back and engage with us we need to talk openly about this

Dickens

I'm still trying to reconcile the explanation given by GNHQ - with the poster I know as Allira... it's almost as though they're describing a completely different person...

Goodness only knows how she must feel.

I feel exactly the same.
I just know she isn't the kind of person to shrug off a warning as no big deal.

Dickens

I'm still trying to reconcile the explanation given by GNHQ - with the poster I know as Allira... it's almost as though they're describing a completely different person...

Goodness only knows how she must feel.

Exactly. As others say, clearly "something is rotten in the state of GransNet" when a poster like Allira has been banned like this. You just need to read through this thread to see that almost everyone is baffled by her ban - and worried that the same could happen to any one of us.

I'm still trying to reconcile the explanation given by GNHQ - with the poster I know as Allira... it's almost as though they're describing a completely different person...

Goodness only knows how she must feel.

Hiya Allira…. What a tribute to you these two threads are.
Keep smiling whatever happens.
We’re thinking of you.x

Scribbles

Delila

If a site is run for the enjoyment and benefit of its members, and the moderators exist to protect the interests of its members, surely it behoves the moderators to take the wishes of the members into account and to respond accordingly?

There have been no dissenting voices, all seem to be in complete agreement on the issue of Allira’s banning, so it seems in this case there is quite a lot to be gained by reversing the decision to ban her.

No! This free-to-use site is not run for the benefit and enjoyment of its members. We are the product, not the client.

The clients are the advertisers who buy space to advertise to us what they have deduced from our conversations on here what sort of people we are and what it may benefit them to advertise to us. This in turn fills GNHQ's coffers and keeps the company viable.

Of course, it benefits GNHQ if we are kept reasonably content, otherwise we may stop using the site and fewer users mean fewer advertisers. Nobody's going to spend their precious advertising budget in a drastically shrinking medium.

While GNHQ will not want us to become too disillusioned, rest assured that our enjoyment and benefit is absolutely NOT their primary concern.

And, while I'm here, GNHQ, please reinstate Allira! That would go a long way towards reducing disillusion.

(If I am now to be banned for telling the truth - 'bye, everyone. 👋)

Perhaps we’re not GNHQ’s primary concern, but I would have thought it’s in their interest to avoid upsetting a large number of their contributors and potentially the advertisers, as it has done in this case, and to acknowledge when they’ve got it wrong.

We should probably keep reporting this thread.

Something is wrong isn’t it LauraNorder. It’s hard not to feel the wrong posters are being banned.
It’s obviously distressing many of us to see our virtual friend Allira banned. To see her character assassinated even worse
I’ve enjoyed gransnet but I’m not enjoying this atall

I can’t believe just how many of you lovely, funny, interesting and inoffensive posters have been threatened with banishment. Something is rotten in the state of GNHQ.

I have just caught up, and that description was never Allira I only contribute to soop's kitchen or give my opinion on air fryers or explaining what happened in my professional life to help because I am walking on egg shells and have been since Covid, being a whisker away from a lifetime ban.

I know. Their Twitter feed hasn't been updated for ages but their Facebook page apparently has 16.5 thousand followers. Who are they?
No more promotions on GN. No competitions. Are things sliding downhill? Looks like they've got nothing to lose in reinstating Allira.

Aveline

I'm checking who actually advertises on here. Not many by the look of it.

I’ve seen lots of complaints about those pop-up adverts we used to get and advice about how to stop adverts on GN.
I just have a grey bar that says ADVERTISEMENT at the top and bottom of my screen.
If there’s no revenue from advertising on GN there’s not much point in buying the advertising space that would help fund GN.

I'm checking who actually advertises on here. Not many by the look of it.

Aveline

Well if Gransnet relies for funding on selling advertising, is that a way for us to exert pressure on moderators to reinstate Allira? Who'd want to advertise on a forum full of unhappy bunnies like us? I think I'll report myself for saying that. Bye.

AI Overview Gransnet does not publicly disclose exact real-time numbers for daily active users. However, as an offshoot of Mumsnet, the platform has an estimated registered user base of roughly 300,000, with the broader network reaching over 11 million monthly visitors.

If these numbers are to believed, then I dont think advertisers are going to be interested in one member disappearing. Or even 100.

No one has actually left the site in support of Allira. [yet]. As far as I have seen.

FGT please don’t avoid news n politics. We often take a different view but not always. If those of us old enough to be on this forum can’t have robust, challenging and interesting debates without fear of the dreaded report button, it’s a poor do

How come gransnet is moderated to ban a popular poster, someone whose character has been assassinated by the mods?
The level of support for Allira across these threads does suggest your posters agree Allira has been subjected to injustice and unfairness

Well if Gransnet relies for funding on selling advertising, is that a way for us to exert pressure on moderators to reinstate Allira? Who'd want to advertise on a forum full of unhappy bunnies like us? I think I'll report myself for saying that. Bye.

Delila

If a site is run for the enjoyment and benefit of its members, and the moderators exist to protect the interests of its members, surely it behoves the moderators to take the wishes of the members into account and to respond accordingly?

There have been no dissenting voices, all seem to be in complete agreement on the issue of Allira’s banning, so it seems in this case there is quite a lot to be gained by reversing the decision to ban her.

No! This free-to-use site is not run for the benefit and enjoyment of its members. We are the product, not the client.

The clients are the advertisers who buy space to advertise to us what they have deduced from our conversations on here what sort of people we are and what it may benefit them to advertise to us. This in turn fills GNHQ's coffers and keeps the company viable.

Of course, it benefits GNHQ if we are kept reasonably content, otherwise we may stop using the site and fewer users mean fewer advertisers. Nobody's going to spend their precious advertising budget in a drastically shrinking medium.

While GNHQ will not want us to become too disillusioned, rest assured that our enjoyment and benefit is absolutely NOT their primary concern.

And, while I'm here, GNHQ, please reinstate Allira! That would go a long way towards reducing disillusion.

(If I am now to be banned for telling the truth - 'bye, everyone. 👋)

Sadly I agree with you Casdon as ever you are the voice of reason.

I think we are wasting our time on this thread - much as it grieves me for Allira and GSM (2 of the 3 posters I exchanged email address with).

However they may find some comfort to be had by my pulling all this into the sunlight.

One can but hope.

It does FGT.
What I don't understand is they claim an absolute mountain of evidence against Allira as per AnnieGransnet's post yet they won't show Allira that evidence. You have to ask why? I can only think of one real reason. If that reason doesn't apply then the only other one I can think of is that if that level of 'evidence' was applied across the board they'd have to ban half the posters ! Either way it's not transparent or fair to deny Allira the sight of the evidence against her.
Even road traffic fines come with evidence that you've broken the rules. I got one for having 'stopped' in a yellow box junction. They accompanied the fine letter with a photograph that showed indeed my rear wheels had failed to clear the box by a whole 3 or 4 inches. I felt annoyed but couldn't argue that I had fouled the box. No doubt if they showed Allira all the incidents where she had and I quote from Annie The decision to ban was made in light of the overall moderation history and a repeated pattern of behaviour over time. It was not based on one incident, one thread, or one report.
That pattern included thread-policing, inflammatory posts, personal digs, bringing old grievances back into threads and encouraging criticism of posters who report posts
And that last one encouraging criticism of posters who report posts is nonsensical because people so rarely own up to having been the reporter so it's not a targeted criticism. Goodness on some threads people are heavily criticised for their political viewpoint and that is directed at the person.

FriedGreenTomatoes2

I can well imagine someone WILL report
my post today

Well I’ve told the truth relayed to me by 3 banned posters

It hurts sometimes I hear.

If there was a pattern to previous bannings FGT, eg they were on a particular type of thread, and/or the same people were involved in the discussion, or whatever, it would be worth reporting that to the mods, because they may not look routinely at who secretly reports what type of posts, and there could be commonality with Allira’s banning?
I think something concrete is needed to further Allira’s case, unfortunately I’m not sure showing support without that will achieve anything as far as the mods are concerned.

Than you for your own validation GG13
I don’t think people realise how bad it is ‘just to be banned’
They ASSUME what doesn’t happen actually takes place.

I am with you FGT2 having been suspended myself once 🤷‍♀️

I can well imagine someone WILL report
my post today

Well I’ve told the truth relayed to me by 3 banned posters

It hurts sometimes I hear.

Unless I have missed something anyone taking offence at Allira's posts must be a very delicate flower.
Judging from most posts we are a resilient lot who've been through a lot over out lifetimes and survived so can't understand this at all.

I hate the lack of transparency LauraNorderr

The mods TELL us how it happens but in actuality is does not.

Why would posters blatantly ignore a warning (or several as they say)? Anyone doing this would be sailing close to the wind. It just doesn’t add up.

I feel cheated to be honest believing that there is a procedure when there isn’t one.

Maybe the mods are of the opinion that deletions from thread ‘are’ warnings?

However some posters get deleted many times and are still with us!
So that assumption doesn’t hold water either.

No wonder after a banning we all (or most of us) walk on eggshells …

Trigger happy posters just waiting t for us to get caught in their crosshairs is how I’m viewing it now so I’m going to swerve any contentious threads

No more Farage, Trump, rubber boat people or dissention of left leaning ideology will ever be posted again by myself. It’s no longer worth the risk with this opaque regulatory stance by the mods.

And it’s such a shame too as much more robust debates take place over in Mumsnet.

They must think that if any of US dared to post in a similar vein that some posters would be reaching for the smelling salts.