The Student Room Group

What the hell has happened to this place?

I've been on TSR for 5 years now under different accounts. And maybe I've just grown out of this site, but it appears to have lost all of it's original value. The majority of posters are judgemental, ignorant and contemptuous people who try and say things for effect, or to seem funny/ banterish, but have absolutely nothing of value to add.


It's a disgrace. The forum used to be used by normal students, but it's now as if it attracts those from the darker areas of the Internet, where bitter, lonely creatures who never feel right in the real world find comfort. It's become a geekier version of Misc and even Reddit.

There's never any decent debate anymore. I remember when the last election was coming around there'd be plenty of good debates going around. Yeah there were plenty of different opinions, but people actually said things of substance. But now it's people just blindly spouting extreme opinions, not giving a toss what the other side says.

And there are so many threads hating on women, it's unreal. I cannot fathom. I see the word 'feminist' used with contempt and disgust in every other thread I read. But the voice of feminists on here are so quiet compared to the pig-headed posters who dominate the forums talking about women as if they genuinely think they are an inferior species.

I genuinely can't work out what's happened to this place, but it doesn't feel like 'The Student Room' anymore. It feels like a forum which attracts the quiet misfits in society. I think this site is done.


I can't post in a site which tolerates people saying victims of sexual assault are justified in being assaulted because 'they are fit though'. Whereas if you dare call someone a troll you get an immediate warning. You need to get your act together.
(edited 9 years ago)

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Reply 1
Original post by Twinpeaks
I've been on TSR for 5 years now under different accounts. And maybe I've just grown out of this site, but it appears to have lost all of it's original value. The majority of posters are judgemental, ignorant and contemptuous people who try and say things for effect, or to seem funny/ banterish, but have absolutely nothing of value to add.


It's a disgrace. The forum used to be used by normal students, but it's now as if it attracts those from the darker areas of the Internet, where bitter, lonely creatures who never feel right in the real world find comfort. It's become a geekier version of Misc and even Reddit.

There's never any decent debate anymore. I remember when the last election was coming around there'd be plenty of good debates going around. Yeah there were plenty of different opinions, but people actually said things of substance. But now it's people just blindly spouting extreme opinions, not giving a toss what the other side says.

And there are so many threads hating on women, it's unreal. I cannot fathom. I see the word 'feminist' used with contempt and disgust in every other thread I read. But the voice of feminists on here are so quiet compared to the pig-headed posters who dominate the forums talking about women as if they genuinely think they are an inferior species.

I genuinely can't work out what's happened to this place, but it doesn't feel like 'The Student Room' anymore. It feels like a forum which attracts the quiet misfits in society. I think this site is done.


I can't post in a site which tolerates people saying victims of sexual assault are justified in being assaulted because 'they are fit though'. Whereas if you dare call someone a troll you get an immediate warning. You need to get your act together.
I've been here for eight years and it's pretty much always been like that. It's just more noticeable now.
Original post by Twinpeaks
I genuinely can't work out what's happened to this place, but it doesn't feel like 'The Student Room' anymore. It feels like a forum which attracts the quiet misfits in society. I think this site is done..

This happened when the tickbox of "I have 11 A*s at GCSE" got removed :s-smilie:
Kinda good to know it hasn't always been this dark. But then I'd like to know too, why it is now.
Reply 4
it's a good thing that tsr has a few good members like myself then
TSR is just reflecting the downwards trend in public discourse.
Reply 6
another thing i've noticed, the mods take ages to deal with problems on here. like i've reported posts before and the next day they tell me they've dealt with it. i'm sure it'd only take about 5 minutes, not a day.
Reply 7
It's actually disgusting the way some people speak to and about others on here. Everyone in every sector of society (except criminals I guess) is of equal worth and is equally deserving of being here.
No one has the right to behave as though this is not the case. The can feel free to (foolishly) believe they are better than others but acting on it is unacceptable.


Posted from TSR Mobile
Nearly gonna be three years for me and I agree. TSR has just gone downhill... gets more boring and repetitive by the day.
I remember a time when TSR used to be a happy place, free from tyranny and oppression. People danced in the street, the sun always shone. And then, the darkness came.....
People have been saying this forever. Not just about TSR.

Your golden days didnt exist
Y'all acting like you seen the internet for the first time, lol.
Original post by thunder_chunky
I remember a time when TSR used to be a happy place, free from tyranny and oppression. People danced in the street, the sun always shone. And then, the darkness came.....


I told you not to call me that anymore :frown:

Just because I was born an ageless demon doesn't mean that is what I always have to be.
Original post by ByronicHero
I told you not to call me that anymore :frown:

Just because I was born an ageless demon doesn't mean that is what I always have to be.


It's almost as if you want an eternal winter to be cast over TSR, an age of darkness,
Original post by damoni
another thing i've noticed, the mods take ages to deal with problems on here. like i've reported posts before and the next day they tell me they've dealt with it. i'm sure it'd only take about 5 minutes, not a day.


The site hacked off quite a few mods, so we left. They haven't been able to find enough mods for some time now (of any quality - there's a lot of barrel scraping going on) and two sections have no section leader.
All the mods are unpaid (though there's a fairly significant case for minimum wage) and so it's not an attractive proposition. It's also done in their spare time, hence why it can take a while.

Posted from TSR Mobile
Reply 15
Original post by Origami Bullets
The site hacked off quite a few mods, so we left. They haven't been able to find enough mods for some time now (of any quality - there's a lot of barrel scraping going on) and two sections have no section leader.
All the mods are unpaid (though there's a fairly significant case for minimum wage) and so it's not an attractive proposition. It's also done in their spare time, hence why it can take a while.

Posted from TSR Mobile

i'm starting to wonder if this is the start of the end for tsr.
Original post by Origami Bullets
The site hacked off quite a few mods, so we left. They haven't been able to find enough mods for some time now (of any quality - there's a lot of barrel scraping going on) and two sections have no section leader.
All the mods are unpaid (though there's a fairly significant case for minimum wage) and so it's not an attractive proposition. It's also done in their spare time, hence why it can take a while.

Posted from TSR Mobile


Bit nasty. I haven't noticed any difference in the moderation, if mods are bad now, they weren't any better a year ago. As for pay - as I said in another recent thread, I don't believe there is any reason why mods should be paid - it is a volunteer role, just like PS helpers were, just like study helpers, just like everyone who helps out on this forum and makes it a nice place to be. Why do mods deserve pay and nobody else?
Original post by Origami Bullets
The site hacked off quite a few mods, so we left. They haven't been able to find enough mods for some time now (of any quality - there's a lot of barrel scraping going on) and two sections have no section leader.
All the mods are unpaid (though there's a fairly significant case for minimum wage) and so it's not an attractive proposition. It's also done in their spare time, hence why it can take a while.

Posted from TSR Mobile


Cheers. :smile:
Original post by damoni
i'm starting to wonder if this is the start of the end for tsr.


People have been saying this for a long time. However, it will continue to limp on because there are people mashing a lot of money off the back of this site.

Original post by Snufkin
Bit nasty. I haven't noticed any difference in the moderation, if mods are bad now, they weren't any better a year ago. As for pay - as I said in another recent thread, I don't believe there is any reason why mods should be paid - it is a volunteer role, just like PS helpers were, just like study helpers, just like everyone who helps out on this forum and makes it a nice place to be. Why do mods deserve pay and nobody else?


The barrel scraping was going on a year ago too. I'm not saying that all mods, or even all new mods, are there because there was no one else. It's just that the desire to become a mod seems to have disappeared (years ago people would have given their right arm to be a mod). That lack of applicants (and people who are willing when they're approached) has made it harder to find the right people, and some who've got through the process wouldn't have years ago.

The numbers simply aren't there any more - eg I recently had to wait 8 days for some very specific interview questions to be removed after I'd reported it. That sort of thing used to be dealt with as a priority.

In terms of pay, I didn't say that no one else deserves to be paid. However, there are a few legal matters that relate to the mod position - namely that being a mod fits every one of these points https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-minimum-wage-worker-checklist

Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Origami Bullets
It's just that the desire to become a mod seems to have disappeared


I find that hard to believe. I suppose I will have to take your word for it given that I have no way to verify what you say, but I think a lot of people who are interested in being mods don't even know how to apply. It seems to be a very cumbersome process.

The numbers simply aren't there any more - eg I recently had to wait 8 days for some very specific interview questions to be removed after I'd reported it. That sort of thing used to be dealt with as a priority.


As far as I can tell the number of moderators has hardly changed. If people are waiting longer for issues to be resolved then it could just be that the moderators aren't as good or have less time to devote to TSR, not that there are too few of them.

In terms of pay, I didn't say that no one else deserves to be paid. However, there are a few legal matters that relate to the mod position - namely that being a mod fits every one of these points https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-minimum-wage-worker-checklist


But that document also says:

When don't I have to be paid the national minimum wage?

You are performing work as a volunteer

In general, an individual working as a volunteer is someone who:

(1) undertakes work for a particular business or charitable organisation for no financial reward or benefit, aside from reimbursement of out of pocket expenses

(2) does not have to turn up for work if they don't want to. It is irrelevant whether the work is performed for altruistic or other reasons, eg to enhance the individuals CV.


It seems pretty unreasonable to volunteer as a moderator and then ask for pay. Why wold you volunteer in the first place if you felt the job warranted a salary?

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