Comment by sigma5
1 year ago
I wonder if this group also operates on HN. Two weeks ago I posted a ask HN post that was immediately removed. After seeing that, I concluded that I should drastically reduce my exposure to the media since I think It's just a tool to manipulate.
If you're worried about specific examples, you should email the mods (dang, that is), at hn@ycombinator.com and ask what's going on. I've found dang to be super responsive and thoughtful in his replies when I've had an occasion to ask something about HN's operation.
That's a silly conclusion to those events. HN basically has a policy of flagging anything involving politics, including things much less controversial than israel/palestine.
> HN basically has a policy of flagging anything involving politics, including things much less controversial than Israel/palestine
This does not preclude the effective operation of an astroturfing operation. I would be absolutely shocked if the site were not a target of such a campaign given its reputed influence.
Astroturfing cannot just remove posts. Flagged dead posts still appear as such.
I don't see any Ask HNs on @sigma5's profile. I don't know if flagged or dead posts show up in the profile, but I guess I figured they did (especially if you have showdead on, like I do). It would be a different story if the post were somehow removed entirely, not just downvoted or made dead.
I've seen plenty of "pro israeli" threads get flagged immediately.
It's just a divisive topic.
What was it about?