Thanks, everyone, for all of your comments, suggestions, and messages of support for community moderation. We've compiled a list of frequently asked questions from the past few days and provided answers to them. When you have questions and suggestions; we're committed to working with you to make this system a success.How do I know if I'm considered a trusted reporter?
Trust levels are always in flux, and there isn't a "Trusted Reporter" title you can earn. This is why there are no "indicators" or "badges" for your Answers account telling you that you're trusted. Whether a question or answer is removed by the community depends on many factors, including the trust and quality levels of the reporters and the person being reported.
I reported something and it wasn't removed right away. Does this mean I'm not trusted?
No. The system is new and in Beta, so not all questions and answers are being moderated by the community. Some reports are still being sent to our Customer Care team for review. The two systems are working in parallel until we feel comfortable enough to make it 100% community-moderated. Just because the question or answer you reported wasn't removed right away does not mean you're not trusted. Trust scores are always in flux, so there isn't a "trusted" or "not trusted" account status. Whether or not a question or answer is removed right away when you report it depends on metrics that include your trust score, the trust score of others who have reported it, and the trust score of the poster. It also depends on whether the report is being sent to the Customer Care team or the community moderation system.
Does an abusive question or answer stay on Answers because it takes more than one trusted reporter to remove it?
The number of people it takes to remove a question or answer varies depending on many factors. In general, abusive content will be removed much faster than the couple of hours it typically took in the old model.
What safeguards do you have to prevent people from "ganging up" on others?
We're looking at many types of data to determine whether or not to remove a question or answer automatically. If several people erroneously report abuse, all of their reputations will decrease, and they will have less influence in the future.
What safeguards do you have to prevent people from earning a high trust, then abusing that power?
Trust levels are ever-changing, based on a community member's activities in Yahoo!Xtra Answers. Users may become highly trusted through accurate reporting and other quality contributions, but if they begin to abuse their power, their reputations will decrease in trust level.
Does being a Top Contributor factor into being a trusted reporter?
No, being a Top Contributor does not make a community member a more trusted reporter. More important considerations are high-quality overall contributions, reporting history, and other factors.
Thanks,
Yahoo!Xtra Answers Team