Good Morning Cooky.

Thank you for your inquiries. What separates reasonable doubt from bashing, or factual optimism and hyping is a very fine line and one that you will find varies from individual to individual. In fact, based on my experience in moderating over 1800 Community's I can tell you that its nearly impossible to strike a universal consesus that one can apply across the border.

With a macro approach being little more than a general guideline, a micro approach needs to be applied to an individual situation. As an example, lets assume that ABC Widgets just had a news release and the Press Release posted on the Hub had 6 responses from 6 members. Assuming that the 5 responses excitement levels were normal, and one overly optimistic, the consesus in that situation would suggest that the one overly optimistic member has a higher level of excitement from their peers. Nothing wrong with that.

If however, that one member posts 2, 3 or more subsequent optimistic responses to a press release with a reasonable excitment response, one would naturally begin to questions ones positive reaction to ABC Widgets recent developments. Likewise if that one poster had been consistently posting utterly pessimistic responses towards a company's, while the mean reaction was reasonable excitement, then one would question that one's poster negative reactions.

The main essence has to do with the community's flow. Was the main discussion consensus of doubt? If so, how does a positive message affect the discussion? Do consistently non informative, emotional or non factual positive posts interrupt the flow on the discussion board? How are others reacting to these posts (green thumbs/ratings)? The same would apply to the opposite situation. If the discussion mood is positive, how do negative posts bode within the community.

Because our forums are made up of people, with a breadth of both knowledge and opinion, sometimes the best measure is to observe while contributing. Because sometimes, a post left/right of centre is simply that; a flash in a pan. If however that left/right continues, ask yourself some questions - are these messages factual or emotional? Does this add to this discussion, or does it "flood" the forum? Is this contribution or interruption in other words.

I suspect that you might need more than an open ended response, and I would like to discuss this in more depth with you, perhaps in reference to an occurence you have experienced or noticed recently. You are welcome to contact us with your concern and we will look into your situation in more depth.

We understand that sometimes, being a Hub Leader can be a thankless job; I speak through experience. However at the end of the day, you can stay assured that your contributions to the forum are appreciated, comprehended and held high in regard. The community has spoken (in form of your five star rating) and they say you bring value to them.

Thanks again for your inquiry.

Regards,

Andreas Marouchos

AGORACOM Community Director