What would being explicit and upfront about this category of curated content look like?
To me it seems like that would require something like a disclaimer box at the top of the post:
“Note:
Lesswrong usually curates posts that embody the virtue of scholarship. This implies balanced, fact-based arguments in which the authors make their line of reasoning transparent, understandable and open to discussion. It excludes referring to the author’s authority as a substitute for an argument. It avoids the use of unnecessarily aggressive rhetoric, in particular based on false statements. This is particularly important in the context of politics discussions, not because these discussions need different rules of analysis on a theoretical level, but because experience suggests that the discussion of politics may be prone to inducing behavior like the disregard of rules of discussion and truth-seeking for only one side of the debate. It is important for LessWrong not to cultivate bias. However, for the present post the mods make an explicit exception and curate it because they want to increase its visibility. They think it is the best summary advice content available on the topic of covid-19. Even though the advice is not verifiable based on the post alone, the mods either believe its statements to be true because they read other texts by the same author that they found convincing, or because they trust the author for other reasons. Moreover, the mods do not endorse the political claims and the obviously false generalizations made in the post.”
This would obviously seem strange, but it is my impression of the reactions to discussions under these posts.
Yes, a disclaimer at the top is the kind of thing I was imagining. Yours is pretty good! Though I might personally refrain from evaluating the political content of the post.
This post has likely already had the bulk of traffic pass through, but for the next one, assuming there is, I’ll likely work on something like this.
I’m glad that you like the draft! I’d like to point out two things, however:
You already did evaluate the political content of the post by curating it. To any outside visitor to this site, from curious people lost in hyperspace to journalists or scientists, the stance that most governments are “Lying Liars With No Ability To Plan or Physically Reason”, that “we” are at “war” against WHO, CDC and FDA will be the political line of LessWrong, with all that this implies, in particular because you made an exception from curation criteria.
A curation is (also) intended to make sure that the curated post will continue to get traffic.
Thank you for your reply, Ruby.
What would being explicit and upfront about this category of curated content look like?
To me it seems like that would require something like a disclaimer box at the top of the post:
“Note: Lesswrong usually curates posts that embody the virtue of scholarship. This implies balanced, fact-based arguments in which the authors make their line of reasoning transparent, understandable and open to discussion. It excludes referring to the author’s authority as a substitute for an argument. It avoids the use of unnecessarily aggressive rhetoric, in particular based on false statements. This is particularly important in the context of politics discussions, not because these discussions need different rules of analysis on a theoretical level, but because experience suggests that the discussion of politics may be prone to inducing behavior like the disregard of rules of discussion and truth-seeking for only one side of the debate. It is important for LessWrong not to cultivate bias. However, for the present post the mods make an explicit exception and curate it because they want to increase its visibility. They think it is the best summary advice content available on the topic of covid-19. Even though the advice is not verifiable based on the post alone, the mods either believe its statements to be true because they read other texts by the same author that they found convincing, or because they trust the author for other reasons. Moreover, the mods do not endorse the political claims and the obviously false generalizations made in the post.”
This would obviously seem strange, but it is my impression of the reactions to discussions under these posts.
Yes, a disclaimer at the top is the kind of thing I was imagining. Yours is pretty good! Though I might personally refrain from evaluating the political content of the post.
This post has likely already had the bulk of traffic pass through, but for the next one, assuming there is, I’ll likely work on something like this.
I’m glad that you like the draft! I’d like to point out two things, however:
You already did evaluate the political content of the post by curating it. To any outside visitor to this site, from curious people lost in hyperspace to journalists or scientists, the stance that most governments are “Lying Liars With No Ability To Plan or Physically Reason”, that “we” are at “war” against WHO, CDC and FDA will be the political line of LessWrong, with all that this implies, in particular because you made an exception from curation criteria.
A curation is (also) intended to make sure that the curated post will continue to get traffic.