The listserv sends users a reminder every month of the group guidelines. The text is:
SE MA Coalition for a Free Palestine has two WhatsApp discussion groups and a listserv. We have no policy restricting subject matter; there's enough censorship out there as it is. We offer:
- a WhatsApp general discussion group where people can comment on issues and events;
- a WhatsApp political discussion group where people can argue about politics;
- a listserv which is intended for posting organizational announcements, agendas, meeting minutes, and major events – but also (within reason) holding discussions requiring posts much longer than what's usually posted to WhatsApp. Please note the "within reason."
A listserv can be a great source of information, but on those where no moderation (self or external) is exercised you really have to be willing to dig through hundreds of posts and replies to find ones of value.
We want to avoid that here on [email protected]. Our listserv was created precisely because members were having trouble finding critical announcements buried in an avalanche of messages on WhatsApp's predecessor.
Most of our users receive listserv messages via email, which means that every "great job!" or "I disagree" or "did you see this?" or duplicate or unnecessary post unnecessarily ends up in someone's inbox.
Please use WhatsApp for non-critical communications. If you are posting a complex or long document, by all means use the listserv. But please use the listserv responsibly. We would much prefer users to exercise self-moderation than to have to start moderating messages.
