Being an editor with the Open Directory Project is a position of trust. Editors are given access to areas on the Open Directory Project's servers and have access to a great deal of sensitive information. Unfortunately, in order to protect the integrity of the project as well as the hard work of the majority of editors, it is sometimes necessary to remove editors from the project.

At times in the past, there has been some confusion as to what type of conduct may result in removal. Please rest assured that removals are not arbitrary; most editors have nothing to worry about. A great deal of confusion on these issues results from false or misleading statements by former editors. Please note that few removed editors are honest when it comes to admitting that there were valid grounds for removal.

The directory guidelines, http://dmoz.org/guidelines.html , provide as follows:

Grounds for Removal

The editors represent the heart and soul of this project. On occasion, however, we are forced to remove editors for a variety of reasons. These reasons include but are not exclusive to the following:

• Repeat failure to comply with the guidelines
• Inability to function well within the Open Directory community
• Poor editing
• Uncivil behavior
• Violation of ODP forum and email privacy
• Self-promotion - site cooling and title or description manipulation
• Tampering with competitors' listings
• Spamming the directory

Both editorial quality and teamwork are essential to the well-being and continued growth of the ODP. Editor removal is left up to the discretion of DMOZ Staff. In some instances it may not be necessary to remove an editor's privileges in full. In such cases editing privileges to individual categories may be removed. Meta editors have the ability to remove an editor's categories.

1. Repeat failure to comply with the guidelines

The directory guidelines, http://dmoz.org/guidelines.html , and the related regional guidelines, http://dmoz.org/regionalguidelines.html , set forth the official position on style and conduct. The consequences of violating the guidelines can range from a warning to immediate loss of editing privileges.

This standard is intended to make clear that editors are expected to read the guidelines and to make a good faith effort to follow them. Editors are expected to respond to guidance received from other editors, relating to conduct that deviates from the guidelines.

While not every guidelines violation is equally serious, whenever an editor repeatedly violates a standard or consistently acts without regard for the guidelines as a whole, that editor risks losing editing privileges.

2. Inability to function well within the Open Directory community

This directory is a cooperative, group effort. Editor feedback tools and the editor forums are provided to help editors communicate with each other and to reach consensus on important decisions affecting the directory.

Editors who cannot keep their cool, who are rude, intimidating, dismissive, disrespectful, or who refuse to work cooperatively, need to either adjust to the cooperative nature of this directory or to find other hobbies. There is nothing wrong with disagreeing with other editors, but you can be amicable when you disagree. Even if you think the other editor was wrong, being right does not justify being disrespectful. (For more information, see Point 4, on uncivil behavior.)

Editors also need to realize that not every collective decision will be the best decision. Nothing we do here is cast in stone, and if collective decisions turn out to be wrong, they can be revisited.

Editors should consider that there are many editors who have more experience with the ODP, its rules, and on how to effectively reach consensus on important issues. The experienced editors help newer editors assimilate and mentor them to work effectively in the community. Some of these experienced editors have been promoted to editall or meta. Sometimes, people get the mistaken impression that metas make rules, or that you can't disagree with a meta's position. The reality is, editors don't become editalls or metas unless they have a good grasp of the directory's rules, policies, culture, and taxonomy. You may always respectfully disagree with an editor, no matter how experienced, but should keep in mind that editors with significantly more experience than you are usually correct when they recite rules and standards.

3. Poor editing

Quality standards have risen significantly over the past year, and the directory guidelines discuss standards for evaluating, describing, and organizing websites.

It is important for editors to recall that every time they add a site that does not comply with those guidelines, somebody has to correct their edit. The more times the guidelines are violated, the more work is created for others. Clean-up usually takes at least as much time, if not more, as adding the sites correctly. A poorly edited category is also an embarrassment to the Directory, as it is seen by all who use ODP data.

4. Uncivil behavior

As a cooperative, collaborative effort, it is important that editors get along. Editors need to respect that we work by consensus, and even if they are sure that their approach or solution is best, they still have to respect the opinions of others. It is possible to disagree without being disagreeable. If you do not feel you can be civil with another editor, please utilize the mediation process, http://www.nwprod.com/odp/mediation.mv , and let an experienced, objective editor try to resolve the dispute.

Sometimes, it may seem that editors who complain the loudest and the hardest get their way, while other editors simply throw up their hands and give in. While strong opinions are welcome, communication that is intimidating, disrespectful, or hostile is not. It is important that the community work harmoniously. When giving an opinion, editors should try to use language that asserts a point of view and make every effort to avoid demonstrating aggressive language and behavior. Continued use of hostile and aggressive language in an uncooperative manner is considered grounds for removal.

Certain types of uncivil conduct are completely unacceptable in this community and will result in the termination of an editor's account. That conduct includes making racial, ethnic, or similarly offensive slurs, creating a hostile or intimidating environment, or making threats directed toward other editors.

5. Violation of ODP forum and email privacy

This rule is self-explanatory. Editors are expected to respect that editor notes, forum discussions, and editor-to-editor feedback are for internal use only. Numerous editors have faced harassment as a result of inappropriate outside disclosures, and that is simply not acceptable. Sharing internal communications outside of the ODP can result in loss of editing privileges.

6. Self-promotion - site cooling and title or description manipulation

The purpose of this document is not to enumerate every way in which the rules may be violated. Editors have been very creative in finding ways to self-promote through title and description manipulation. The point is, don't do it.

Site cooling for purposes of self-promotion reaches beyond your own site and extends to any site you have designed or stand to make money from as a result. Don't cool sites as favors to friends, family members, employers, employees, or anybody else -- that's not what the "cool" function is for.

7. Tampering with competitors' listings

This is a counterpart to the rules against self-cooling, or favorable manipulation of your own site's title or description. If you edit your competitors' sites to be returned less favorably in searches, you are engaging in another form of unacceptable self-promotion. Editors who are found to be deleting their competitors' sites will be immediately removed.

8. Spamming the directory

So you really like your site and think that it should be listed in every category? You think that every page of your site should be separately indexed? You think you should create a special hierarchy of categories and subcategories to house multiple listings or deep links from your site? You think that multiple pages from your site should be indexed in a single category? You think that your mirror and doorway sites should be listed?

Guess again. Your site's listings are governed by the same standards as any other site, and you are not privileged to favor your site with additional, inappropriate listings by virtue of being an editor.

9. Other conduct that may result in removal

This list cannot possibly anticipate every form of abuse. Abusive editors have shown great ingenuity in trying to sidestep these rules and in trying to distinguish their conduct from that expressly forbidden. These standards represent the spirit of the guidelines. A creative abuser who tries to exploit a perceived loophole will not escape sanction.

Please note that deliberate deception, at any point during your time as an ODP editor, is considered a strong ground for removal. Please be honest in all of your ODP-related communications.

Warnings

Whenever possible, we try to warn editors that their conduct puts them at risk of losing their editing privileges. However, when it is apparent that an editor's primary reason for editing is self-promotion, where an editor has been previously warned about another issue and the new violation shows a pattern of disregard for the guidelines, or where there is concern that the editor will try to damage the directory if removal does not occur, removal can be immediate. Automatically generated warnings, such as the one that now appears when you "cool" a website, count as warnings.

Please do not disregard warnings. The consequence of ignoring warnings is usually removal.

Who Removes Editors?

Metas may make recommendations to staff that editors be removed and under certain circumstances may remove an editor's categories. Only ODP Staff can completely remove an editor from the directory.

Conclusion

Despite rumors to the contrary, removals are not arbitrary and do not follow from having simple disagreements with metas or even staff. Removal decisions are taken very seriously by all involved. Removal follows from serious abuse, persistently bad editing, or inability to function in a community of editors.

I would like to thank sh33na for inspiring this article, and flame, hutcheson, orlady, sh33na, goldm, icxcnika, wcowley, goal608, for contributing ideas and suggestions.