Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uunet!ateng!chip From: chip@ateng.com (Chip Salzenberg) Newsgroups: news.groups Subject: Newsgroup selection as personal prejudice Message-ID: <25684261.25413@ateng.com> Date: 20 Nov 89 18:28:48 GMT References: <21910@gryphon.COM> <3329@watale.waterloo.edu> <10449@thorin.cs.unc.edu> <2903@viper.Lynx.MN.Org> <5805@unix.SRI.COM> <25641F75.28203@ateng.com> <5831@unix.SRI.COM> Organization: A T Engineering, Tampa, FL Lines: 34 According to maslak@unix.SRI.COM (Valerie Maslak): >According to chip@ateng.com (Chip Salzenberg): >>[Valerie's point about sysadmin job descriptions] is irrelevant. >>Job descriptions are often vague and general. A simple phrase such as >>"maintain electronic communications" covers newsgroup selection. > >Does it indeed, if what we're talking about is really one person >inflicting his or her personal prejudices on an entire workspace? Yes. A sysadmin's responsibilities always include value judgements. A good sysadmin will consider the values of the users in addition to his or her own, but at some point someone must make a decision as to what is a worthwhile use of university or company resources. For example, ateng doesn't carry soc.men, soc.singles or soc.women. Why? Because, in my opinion, their volume is too high for the (non-)good they do. On the other hand, in my opinion, talk.bizarre is good for comic relief and the occasional mind-bending article from mr x or Bill Bill. Other admins are prejudiced against bizarreness. That's their opinion. No big deal. >No, at some point, what you're talking about is really a form of >censorship based on personal prejudice [...] You know a Usenet discussion has gone on too long when someone: 1. Brings up Hitler and the Nazis. 2. Reminds us all that Usenet is an anarchy. 3. Calls newsgroup selection "censorship". -- You may redistribute this article only to those who may freely do likewise. Chip Salzenberg at A T Engineering; or "Did I ever tell you the Jim Gladding story about the binoculars?"