AskMe Post Inadvertantly Promotes

September 16, 2004 12:05 PM

Admin hope has been requested here. Tankoo.
posted by scarabic to Etiquette/Policy at 12:05 PM (3 comments total)

While the restriction on selflinking in the Blue makes perfect sense, as it's clearly pretty improper to put one's own site forward as The Best of the Web, I don't see why one wouldn't be able to link one's own site to help clarify a question in the Green. Ask Metafilter is a place to ask questions and get answers -- if one's site is part of (or informs) the question being asked, why would this restriction apply?
posted by George_Spiggott at 3:03 PM on September 16, 2004

got it, thanks.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 3:10 PM on September 16, 2004

It has to be enforced on the strict side because the temptation to abuse it, even innocently, is very great. In this case, looking at the site wasn't necessary to offer help. The asker had a decent description of the help needed, and people could respond to it without seeing the actual site.

However innocently the link was included, I will bet that the site in question saw a significant number of incoming visitors from it. That's value, online. Cash. Visits. Eyeballs. Texas Tea. Like it or not. And it's just bad to mix the community benefits of Mefi with the cash/recognition/success of outside projects, either professional or personal.

None of us, myself included, can be trusted to make good decisions about self-linking (hello - definition of bias) and so it's just plain verboten, whether it's showing off the best-of-the-web, or asking for some help.
posted by scarabic at 7:42 PM on September 16, 2004