Brownstoner censors discussion forums

OMG.

Are you alleging that websites aren't 100% objective and totally unbiased??

Does Al Gore know about this?

trickledown, have never found this to be even remotely true. Can you provide specific threads? Brownstoner is a great site, and though there certainly is some snark, I find there are fewer nutjobs than there are right here (said in the most affectionate way possible, of course!).

"Are you alleging that websites aren't 100% objective and totally unbiased??"

Of course not but there is a difference from "100% objective" "totally unbiased" and choosing the postings that appear in the discussion forums according to whether they promote this bias. Further, it is nowhere mentioned that discussions are moderated thereby creating a false impression.

"trickledown, have never found this to be even remotely true. Can you provide specific threads? "

I tried to post on several "house of the day", "coop of the day", etc threads but nothing appeared. My messages were nothing but offensive--only my "bear" views to brooklyn r.e.

I find it as surprising as you do and that's why I am reporting it. I was wondering about the absence of several posters until it happened to me.

trickledown you are totally wrong. You must not know who The What is........he is more of an ass than BJW but not more of an ass than NYC10022/somewherelese/eddiewilson..

Speaking of which, whatever happened to The What? Haven't seen him for a long time.

The conspiracy grows...

Maybe Brownstoner's owners own property and are trying to prop up values. I like brownstoner, but it gets a little repetitive. Always something new and different on SE!

that site was hijacked by a bunch of gay cheerleaders. Its like being in a gay bar which is fine if you are gay.

Also fine for those who have no problem with gays, which is a significant majority of New York. What do gays have to do with Brownstoner, exactly? Apart from buying or renting the occasional apartment in Brooklyn?

It's not that a big deal, in the sense, let them (gay or not) do their cheerleading. However, the way the website is set up gives an air of authority and objectivity and the prices they quote (present or future) along with their views on local and national economy are downright delusional. It's a scam.

Well, like it or not, once you post on or browse brownstoner they have very sophisticated tracking technology, and start following your life, finances, find out if you're not gay (or not yet gay, if you're persuadable), and that sort of thing. It's just part of the bargain of using that "free" site. Personally, I like brownstoner, and it's okay with me if they want to monitor my various internet activities, facebook, whatever.

But, to be clear, I wasn't aware that they are biased. I just use it for things like "there is a ditch on north 4th and berry; sometime this century the ditch will be a condo; the condo might be fifteen floors; update, the condo might be five floors. I know I should be more sensitive and I am sure it's there, but so far I don't see gender bias in that.

trickledown,

This has been true on curbed.com pertaining too a thread on The Edge.

This is my preference hierarchy: SE > Brownstoner > RealDeal > Curbed?/What's that?

Are you tired of Brownstoner being a pussy!
Are you tired of all the Asshats well..

Come over the asshathill.com and chat with you're Homeboy The What!

At asshathill.com you can Post video and pictures, have a avatar and have a great time!

Just apply for a username/password and I will approve you!

See you there!

The What

Someday this war is gonna end..

"Maybe Brownstoner's owners own property and are trying to prop up values. I like brownstoner, but it gets a little repetitive"

ditto.

one of the complaints about SE might actually be its strengths. The moderators basically leave it alone, where other forums moderate and often exhibit bias. You have to use the ignore button more here, but its a fair tradeoff.

Fact is, on this board you have more called-it-right-on-the-crash posters than probably all those others sites combined. Less of that pretending to be objective but really pushing an agenda stuff.

brownstoner does have a lot of negative people, so not sure about the censorship thing.

true that it is overrun by raging queens who yack about nothing and are widely anti-women and anti-families (you know, children are "crotchfruit" blah blah, there are too many women with strollers in park slope, blah blah) and seem to live in total solitude. they absolutely cannot wrap their heads around the real estate needs of people with families although some of their posts are funny.

Plus some renters post on the site all the time that are never going to buy and really shouldn't talk about property values or influence buyers because they are totally ignorant of the market.

the site, for the most part, is pro-brownstones/pro-victorian architecture to the point of ridiculousness. i find most of the posters to be incredibly conservative people who are only comfortable with the repetitive architectural details circa 1800 whatever and couldn't decorate a room if their lives depended on it. of course they have no clue just how conservative they are, sure they think they are liberals but they do not have open minds for the most part.

my advice would be to write to brownstoner himself personally and ask what's up.

somewhereelse
about 19 hours ago
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Fact is, on this board you have more called-it-right-on-the-crash posters than probably all those others sites combined. Less of that pretending to be objective but really pushing an agenda stuff.

OMG, we have a bunch of Elaine Garzarelli's here who projected the 1987 crash with their crystal ball ONCE and will probably never be right again.

Probability and luck don't make genius.

Stop patting yourself on the back.

I'm not very familiar with the Brownstoner site and I'm wondering if I should be reading this site as well. Are most of the discussions focused on Brooklyn real estate or are there discussions about Manhattan? Is there less financial discussion on Brownstoner and more discussiona about renovation projects? Is this a site which you would recommend that someone who wants to buy an apartment in Manhattan read?

"Fact is, on this board you have more called-it-right-on-the-crash posters than probably all those others sites combined."

Most of the bears here predicted 50-70% price declines in NYC. I wouldnt' consider that as "called-it-right".

Lobster: I started reading Bstoner 4+ years ago. It's all Bk RE, but interesting nonetheless. Started off as a blog by a guy who was renovating his Clinton Hill bstone, and has morphed into posts on everything Bk, with a focus on bstone renovation, prices, etc. I find that it has more "content" than SE.

My list of sites RE/design related that I frequent:
curbed.com (though it has jumped the shark a little)
brownstoner.com
apartmenttherapy.com
remodelista.com
archdigest.com
coopsales.com
blockshopper.com
SE

and broker websites - corcoran, elliman, bhs, stribling, townhouseexperts, sothebys

and I subscribe to Elle Decor & Dwell online through zinio.com

In the spring, quite a few Bk nabes have house tours. It's a nice way to while away Sunday mornings. Bk Hts, F Greene, Ditmas, Prospect Hts, Slope ...

Years ago, as a bandleader, I once had a nutcase get on a public discussion board analogous to Brownstoner and libel me and my band.

I tried to stop this, so I ended up talking with a lawyer about it, as well as the owners of the site.

What I was told at that time is, once a website admin starts editing posts, they become editors and incur liability regarding the things people say--similar to a newspaper or magazine. But if they leave everything alone, and don't edit anything, then they are not editors and are in a much safer position regarding libel.

In the end I couldn't do anything about misleading accusations, and over time the posts went away and the favorable posts took over and all was well. The truth really did win out.

I'm certainly no expert on the law in this area, and I have been told the law keeps evolving.

But if Brownstoner is editing posts to represent a certain position, for their sake I hope they know what they are doing, because if I could have taken legal action against the website I'm talking about here, I would have.

nyc10023 - none of these others?

www.urbandigs.com
www.theapplepeeled.com
www.seekingalpha.com

?

i need to check out remodelista :)

Honeycrisp: I am more interested in RE from the "porn" angle instead of the economic piece. That's why I rarely visit UD or the other more economics-focused websites.

Agreed, everything depends on where are u coming from. For me, a sideline sitter, UD, therealdeal, and SE (which forum is really great) are invaluable sources of info. When I want to check something about renovating a house, I usually check the brownstoner. And when I want to investigate a specific listing, I go to propertyshark and acris. For trends and RE gossip, curbed. I stay away from trulia.
Honeycrisp, I guess that your blog is quite new. Ill check it.

nyc10023 - got it
mimi, relatively new with respect to its incarnation in this format, yes - though the content dates are accurate (it just used to be sent via a newsletter back then) - just wanted to open up the content for interaction and such, so the blog platform works great
would love your thoughts on it as as experienced sideline sitter :)

"The What is and ass.."

Your Mother.

"Speaking of which, whatever happened to The What? Haven't seen him for a long time."

I got banned from Brownstoner and now I have my own Blog/forum - asshathill.com and frownstoner.com.

If you want a log in please email me - asshathill.com and if you use my site please wait until I approve you. I have problems from the "Brownstoner Cheering Section" bombing up my board.

"my advice would be to write to brownstoner himself personally and ask what's up."

Forget it Jon's in in his own little bubble (Pun intended)!

Oh the "SDFL" means Supreme Dictator For Life..

The Wjhat

Someday this war is gonna end..