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Channel Editors' Roundtable: Managing the Conversation on Faith

October 13, 2015 by Patheos Editors

Continued from Page 2

What's it like to work closely with this uniquely diverse team of channel editors? Are there any tense moments, especially with your bloggers clashing forcefully on the field of religious opinion?

Dale: I love and trust these people, in part because I know them as people. The Faith Matters survey found that more Americans have close friends and family of other religions than ever before, which reduces distrust. That's what has happened on this team. Many of our beliefs (i.e., what is true) are as far apart as they could be, but we share many values (i.e., what is good). When there are conflicts between our bloggers or between us, our various perspectives aren't just free-floating ideologies: they have a human face, which makes us much more likely to work things out respectfully. It's a recipe for world peace if you ask me.

Nancy: Dale, I agree—it's super fun to get acquainted with all of the managers. I believe everyone is respectful, kind, and helpful… even though we're promoting articles that are diametrically opposed to each other's beliefs.

Kate: As the newest member of this team, I'm so grateful to see the mission of Patheos embodied in the people I'm working alongside. I love the humor that comes out in the chat posts during team meetings. It's like passing notes during assembly in junior high! And the heated debates over things like the use of the Oxford comma are simply hilarious. Only people who truly respect one another can poke fun at each other's sacred cows.

Dilshad: I've been here nearly five years now. Aside from my own team of writers, whom I love, the editors are the best part of this job. We are very diverse, with very different thoughts and passions for our faith or non-faith. Our writers can clash at times. But as editors we talk to each other with respect and humility and work through those clashes on behalf of our writers. Dale once advised us to not think in silos, and that has been so helpful.

Jennifer: I agree with so much of what has been said here. I always have hoped to be a person who was respectful in ecumenical and interfaith contexts but this does help me put a human face on it and has made me far more curious to learn more about other's beliefs. Also, long live the Oxford comma.

Have you ever had to talk to a blogger about changing or deleting a post because of content? Under what circumstances do you do that, and what's your approach?

Dale: Censorship is a sensitive issue for many atheists, especially those who came from religious traditions that stigmatize or stifle dissent. "No one will ever again tell me what I cannot say" is a common sentiment, and I need to stay aware of that. But when it becomes self-defeating, paints with too broad a brush, or strays from accuracy, I ask the writer to consider revising. I have to frame the request in terms of fairness, accuracy, and effectiveness, not avoiding offense or feigning respect for all ideas.

Dilshad: I've never asked a blogger to remove a post. I have often worked with writers to edit/add/delete from their content, but more so with one-time writers. I need my writers to be able to substantiate what they are opining on.

Jason: I had a lot of writers upset about a recent post in our channel. I didn't ask the writer to remove or even edit the post, but I did ask him to try and talk to those who disagreed with him. We have to talk with and to each other, not simply at each other. I've suggested to writers that they change a post's title, but in such cases it's not about content so much, but more about attracting readers.

Religion can be a delicate and personal subject for readers as well. How do you and your bloggers handle commenters who cross the line, and where is that line?

Deborah: Every blogger wants to know how to handle comments. Should they engage? Stay out of it altogether? Delete a troll? Each blogger has the freedom and authority to make those decisions on their own, including deleting comments that cross their own line, as well as block a commenter altogether. We ask them to make that the last resort, not the first, because we want to be a site that is open to differing points of view, on any blog. But some people are just not respectful, period, so they dig their own grave.

As Patheos has gotten bigger, we've had to accept that the "haters" are going to show up to the conversation. And clearly, that's not ideal, especially at a site like Patheos. The good news is that we have some exciting plans in place to shape a different conversation forum at Patheos, which you'll be hearing about soon!

Jennifer: I have seen some pretty pointed and hostile comments on a couple of blogs, but to me they have not crossed the line into nastiness for the sake of nastiness and remained on the side of making an intellectual point, even if it was a point that obviously made the commenter very angry in the process.

Article Continued On Next Page

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10/13/2015 4:00:00 AM

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