Online communities can be interesting creatures and the anonymity the web provides can be a good thing, it also can be used by the dark side. Or in this case turn a community into a living, breathing soap opera.
I have been “lurking” at MNspeak for almost a year. (In fact, my blog was around the 100th in the aggregator at the time I started.) I liked the idea of the local folk getting together for a chat. While I have never met any of the personalities as a frequent visitor you feel like you know some of the users. I have some of their blogs linked on the left hand side of this page.
I have been really busy so my lurking has become more like an infrequent drive-by to the site. Maybe, 2-3 times a week.
Not so happy with what I found yesterday and in other recent posts. It seems that the general tone has turned more negative. Sure I get that online communities can get this way and people will do what they will do but as a visitor I can and may choose to go somewhere else.
Rex Sorgatz who started MNspeak recently sold the site to a local group as he took a job with Microsoft and relocated to Seattle. I was aware of that.
Before I go on, a disclaimer. I am not good with “famous” or “it” people. I rarely know names and for the most part could care less. That goes for Hollywood and the local scene.
Monday the Star Tribune ran an article, Bartel 2.0. Here is where I show my ignorance. I read the City Pages often. Until the article I had no idea who published it. Frankly, I did not and still do not care. So I would never have known that Tom Bartel used to own City Pages and now owns the Rake. That Tom’s brother Mark is now the publisher at the City Pages.
I did know that Matt Bartel, son of Tom Bartel, bought MNspeak from Rex. How it was financed, I could care less. I do find his particular story interesting being he is still in college and trying to find what to do with the site.
Now forward to this posting How Mo Po and the 200+ comments.
Take a read for yourself as I am not going to take the time to introduce the known characters, the assumed identities of the “anonymous” posters, or put in my two cents on the many comments that are filled with self-serving ego and talking about what clearly is a few years of confrontation between a writer and publisher.
My only suggestion is this, moderators of online communities should receive formal training on how to not let the inmates run and ruin the asylum. Rex did a great job with this and I hope he can help Matt out.
I am curious about the part with Girl Friday and how a comment of hers was edited regarding a link to a recipe on “meth”. Personally, the link in her comment should have stayed and then the community should have shunned her for including it.
Prepare for a tangent:
The recent City Pages Best of the Twin Cities 2006 listed as the Best Cheap Thrill, Crystal Meth. Yeah no joke. The City Pages did not handle that well at all. Take a look at the two updates and the comments that were posted.
Heck, in this season of a U.S. Senate race Minnesota Congressman Mark Kennedy took his displeasure regarding the Best Cheap Thrill to the floor of the House.
Back to MNspeak:
Around the first of the year I contacted Rex about my interest in placing a banner ad on MNspeak promoting this blog. I am in the middle of figuring out where to place the ads now.
Until I see what direction the new management is taking and what the tone of the site will take I think I will wait a while before writing the check.
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