The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#1

Post by wcummings » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 2:23 PM UTC

The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)
priceonomics.com

Re: The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#2

Post by scholia » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 2:59 PM UTC

Good point ;-)

Re: The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#3

Post by pcunite » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 3:43 PM UTC

Great article. It was 1997 I believe and my dad and I sent each other a message over AOL instant messenger for the first time. It felt like magic to communicate that way. The phone was few feet away but this seemed futuristic and awe inspiring.

Re: The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#4

Post by pbhjpbhj » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 3:50 PM UTC

>As described, Reddit is an interesting example where people voluntarily fill the same community leader role that Aol’s volunteers did, although they do so with fewer restrictions and more agency. //

Presumably the current Reddit debacle is the stimulation for posting this now. The article mentions Buzzfeed and Youtube models too. Quite interesting.

Re: The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#5

Post by [deleted] » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 3:52 PM UTC

[deleted]

Re: The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#6

Post by cddotdotslash » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 3:54 PM UTC

[deleted] wrote: post #5

[deleted]

It doesn't seem like it. It's very clear to point out the differences between AOL's mandatory time commitment and rules and Reddit's "suggested tips."

Re: The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#7

Post by gesman » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 3:58 PM UTC

Also - lets not forget that chat room monitors were willing to put up with the AOL TOS, hours and conditions for one good reason:

that sweet feeling of power to kick and ban other people (and likely to brag about it to their buddies).

Re: The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#8

Post by excitom » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 4:11 PM UTC

Kind of off topic, but the "Aol" branding has always grated on me. It's an acronym, AOL, not a word.

Re: The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#9

Post by osconfused » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 4:15 PM UTC

excitom wrote: post #8

Kind of off topic, but the "Aol" branding has always grated on me. It's an acronym, AOL, not a word.

Originally, yes it was an acronym, then they officially changed it to a word in 2006. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AOL

Re: The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)

#10

Post by RyanMcGreal » Fri, Jul 03, 2015, 4:43 PM UTC

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #4

>As described, Reddit is an interesting example where people voluntarily fill the same community leader role that Aol’s volunteers did, although they do so with fewer restrictions and more agency. // Presumably the current Reddit debacle is the stimulation for posting this now. The article mentions Buzzfeed and Youtube models too. Quite interesting.

I had to look up the current reddit debacle:

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/new...

I'm still not sure what's going on, though.