Changes To News Submissions For The Breaking Alternative News Forum

I have seen lots of posts on BAN that really belong on Breaking Political News. But Breaking Political News is an internet Siberia. There are so few replies (well, there are some that get a lot of response but not many)or new threads on there that IMO people are discouraged from posting in it.

I know I have been. I get a lot more response on BAN than I do on BPN.

I would guess that as many as 1/4 of the postings on BAN are really political in nature, and so belong on BPN. I have been assuming that breaking political news, if it involves a scandal or some other alternative slant, is ok for BAN. But I guess that's not what you want now. Is that correct?

Why do we have to use the original source for news? I don't like the MSM. I find the MSM too opinionated and unfactual.

SO, you did mention that people were creating sub-par duplicate threads, possibly to get more points.

But what if the original thread on a topic using article A is actually subpar. Say a member finds a better article, B, and cannot make a duplicate thread so they post on the original thread, while the sub-par member gets all the points for the better article B and following discussion.

I understand why you're doing this and I think it is much welcomed, but I do think the points argument isn't very good... just because it's still going to be a problem. And also that perhaps better articles, maybe follow-ups, will be posted in the midst of many pages of discussion on an older article that people may have stopped following.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


Now this will definitely come in handy. Hopefully this can help eliminate duplicate threads since we all know that different News sources use different headlines. I have too many times tried finding a thread with every keyword imaginable and still got beat to the story, sometimes after I made a thread because it was under a different headline. I will definitely use this!

Edit: Referring to the firehose.

[edit on 21-4-2009 by N3krostatic]

Originally posted by Sestias
I have seen lots of posts on BAN that really belong on Breaking Political News. But Breaking Political News is an internet Siberia.

That may be... but the title of the forum we're discussing here is Breaking ALTERNATIVE News... and hence the focus on issues that relate to the topics discussed on ATS. There may often be a great deal of cross-over in contemporary politics, and it's up to the member submitting the story to clearly spell that out in their comments.

Originally posted by Frankidealist35
Why do we have to use the original source for news?

It doesn't matter if you like or dislike the original source of a story you're considering for submission... the source is the source. A respect for the creators of content has always been at the core of our linking and external-quoting policies... whether you agree with the source or not.



[edit on 21-4-2009 by SkepticOverlord]

Originally posted by ravenshadow13
But what if the original thread on a topic using article A is actually subpar. Say a member finds a better article, B, and cannot make a duplicate thread so they post on the original thread, while the sub-par member gets all the points for the better article B and following discussion.

Which is more important to you, points or a productive discussion?

While I understand your point, credit still needs to go to the original member who created "article A" because they were first to the line and created a thread that resulting in meaningful (hopefully) replies and follow-up links to additional sources and opinions.

MODS

I am not able to post a new thread in breaking alternative

all I get when I click submit is a blank page.

Originally posted by SkepticOverlord

Originally posted by Sestias
Why do we have to use the original source for news?

It doesn't matter if you like or dislike the original source of a story you're considering for submission... the source is the source. A respect for the creators of content has always been at the core of our linking and external-quoting policies... whether you agree with the source or not.

Huh? I didn't ask this question attributed to me, where did it come from?

Anyway, my question was how does one know where to post a political artice, and what kinds of political articles are ok for BAN?

I agree with your changes. I just wanted some clarification. Thanks.

I still can't create a thread in breaking news

u guys must have changed the code

any update on the issue?

Originally posted by ModernAcademia
I still can't create a thread in breaking news

I've completed two tests without any trouble.

What are you seeing?

Originally posted by Frankidealist35
Why do we have to use the original source for news? I don't like the MSM. I find the MSM too opinionated and unfactual.

Well after you post the article why don’t you point out where they’re being opinionated and un-factual in another post?

reply to post by SkepticOverlord

Now you can check the ATS news "firehose"

What a great idea, that should help a lot. Like the name.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord

Originally posted by SkepticOverlord
I'm working on a page that shows all new "BAN" threads, in descending order of submission date, which should make double-checking for duplicates much easier.

Now *that* will make it much easier for members to adhere to the new guidelines.

Simple solution, and very useful.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


What if there are 1,000 original sources? Are you talking about not using blogs but using the source that came from the blog? I just want to make sure I'm clear about this.

Originally posted by Frankidealist35
What if there are 1,000 original sources?

There's only one original source... the site/entity that originally created the story.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


Uh... may I ask how are we supposed to know what site created the story originally? I'm sorry if it seems like I am giving you a hard time but there are more than one sites that show the story at one time... what if it's really breaking news and it happens all at once on many sites? That's the thing I'm wondering about.

Originally posted by Frankidealist35
what if it's really breaking news and it happens all at once on many sites?

You'll find the clarity you need in the opening post: This provides some much-needed clarification of what kinds of sources are allowed. Essentially any mainstream news web is a valid submission source. If you source a web site outside the "mainstream," it must be the original source -- the creator -- of the story you're submitting.

Originally posted by SkepticOverlord
I'm working on a page that shows all new "BAN" threads, in descending order of submission date, which should make double-checking for duplicates much easier.

Most excellent idea, I have to admit when a 'really' good piece of information comes through, I like others get so excited to bring it to the forum that the search engine does not get the workout it should.

Also as far as having a list of the BAN most recent submissions will help considerably and as you have already stated if you submit after another and feel yours has a different angle that needs to be brought forward than just use it as a post in the already existing thread.

This will also be a good reminder to use the drafts for new submission so as not to loose your work when hitting post... I have done that many times and it is heart breaking.

This will work out well.

Originally posted by SkepticOverlord

Originally posted by Maxmars
Evidently I was unclear.

No... not really.

But I think you misunderstood the point of all this... asking our members to make a little more effort before submitting a news item to the "BAN" forum. I'm working on a page that shows all new "BAN" threads, in descending order of submission date, which should make double-checking for duplicates much easier.

Thank you, thank you..a million times over THANK YOU.
And here I thought by posting that in Simon's thread I might be wasting my time as perhaps it wasn't feasible.
OH HAPPY DAY!
edit to add:
As I backtrack on this thread I see points are an issue for some.
WHY?
Did you sign up as a member for points, or to learn and discuss issues here that most of us cannot outside of this site?Points are a perk, but they are not the bottom line.
Bit of a priority shift.

[edit on 21-4-2009 by AccessDenied]

This is a great idea.

When you check out recent posts and find a topic that grabs you, there is nothing worse than posting long replies and getting into a discussion only to find the thread closed due to duplication.

If dupicate threads can't be merged, then I guess it's best to just delete them as most posters couldn't be bothered to redo the reply into the original first posted thread anyway.

Hey Skeptic. There are several threads that have a conspiracy slant that are being sent to the BAN forum that I feel don't belong there. I know you're being a bit strict on your thread policy but why are you doing this?