[Members] Re: Proposal for a moderation team

Hi folks, I would like the board to consider, at their next meeting, the formation of a team for moderation of XSF discussion venues (at least MUCs). "Why?" Currently the set of people with moderator/admin status in XSF venues varies from channel to channel, and people are granted permissions on a rather ad hoc basis. This raises questions of responsibility and transparency, and moderation varies significantly between channels. The goal of a moderation team would be to: - Formally define a set of people to gain moderation rights across all XSF discussion venues - Spread the responsibility, accountability and decision-making among members - Improve communication between moderators (formation of a dedicated MUC for the team to discuss moderation matters would be sensible) Currently moderators act primarily as individuals, which leaves them open to being singled out for retaliation, rather than feeling like they have the backing of the XSF. This sometimes leads to no moderation action being taken, when it probably should (if we care about the health of our community). If moderation decisions can be agreed with a team, this will help make our moderation actions more consistent and more fair to both the moderator and the moderated. "What would be the difference from the conduct team?" I see the conduct team as a smaller group reserved for tackling only important cases, mostly reactively, in response to reports and appeals as described in the CoC. The moderation team would (ideally) consist of slightly more people. They would be responsible for the day-to-day moderation duties while following the words of the CoC and the direction of the conduct team where provided.

Regards, Matthew