Any ideas on promoting civility on SO/SF/SU?

Question

The internet is an outlet for many people to "talk tough" without having to face the accused. Stack Overflow (et. al.) is somewhat of an exception with a strong sense of community. Criticisms are usually constructive. However, some users are near belligerent and somewhat "poisonous" to the feel of community. If left unchecked, it could become a contagious problem.

Are there any ideas on how to promote civility?

Example of problem: read the recent activity of the following user: https://stackoverflow.com/users/285587?tab=activity

Answer 1

Depending on how bothered you are by the activity you see, here's what you should do (in order of escalation):

1. Ignore the post and move on.
2. Downvote the post.
3. Flag the post as offensive.
4. Flag the post for moderator attention, explaining why you think it needs it.
5. Email "the team" (team@stackoverflow.com) to discuss the problem.

The specific user you provided an example about is a bit of an exception to how things usually work around here. More often, users are either helpful or hurtful. Plenty of hurtful users have been essentially banned from the site already. This user is helpful, but still caustic. I would make a little noise with the mods (see step 4, above) to make sure they are aware that he continues to be an issue.

Answer 2

If you think something is uncivil, flag it and let a moderator deal with it.

If it's actually uncivil, the content will be changed or removed, and the user possibly warned or banned. If it's civil, then you'll know either by it's remaining there or a moderator comment saying so.