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How to Become a MAL Moderator

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Oct 5, 2015 5:59 AM
#1
Kineta
Lead Admin
Faerie Queen

Offline
Aug 2007
6263
Open Application Process
To increase our pool of possible nominees for internal recruitments, and allow users a place to show interest in becoming a moderator outside of site-wide recruitment processes, I have created this thread and an accompanying bot account. In this thread, you will find duties for each respective moderator type and details on how to submit an open application for that position. Please do not send a general staff application. You should choose which position you think would suit your strengths and interests best.

If we are looking for a few new hands and are interested in your application, you will receive a PM from me with details about a second round. This may be days or months after your application, so please do not expect a timely response.
KinetaJan 18, 2022 11:34 AM
This topic has been locked and is no longer available for discussion.
Oct 5, 2015 6:00 AM
#2
Kineta
Lead Admin
Faerie Queen

Offline
Aug 2007
6263
Anime DB Moderator

An Anime Moderator's duties include, but are not limited to:
  • Knowing, understanding and executing the Anime DB Guidelines.
  • Adding new/improving existing anime/people/character entries.
  • Adding anime entries for the applicable news announcements on MAL.
  • Approving/denying additions and edits submitted by users.
  • Documenting denied anime user entries via the Merges/Removals/Denials thread.
  • Monitoring the Modifications thread and Anime DB Support board regularly to answer user questions.
  • Cooperating with other mods and admins in the general maintenance of MAL's database.
  • Idling in our Discord server.

Site-wide recruitments for Anime Moderators occur approximately every 2 years.
The last recruitment ended in Dec 2015. The next recruitment is expected: TBD (Not actively recruiting).

Please add at least 3 anime entries to the database, doing your best to closely follow the Anime DB Guidelines, before submitting an open application. Then you may send my bot a PM including the following:
  • Subject: Anime DB Moderator
  • Message:
    • Your age and timezone (must be at least 17 years old)
    • If you are proficient in any languages other than English (esp. Japanese/Korean/Mandarin)
    • A few paragraphs describing:
      -- yourself as a person
      -- why you are interested in the position (should include more than just "I saw you needed people")
      -- why you feel you are qualified
      -- why you are self-motivated to commit to volunteering for the community for a minimum of 1 year
      -- which aspects of MAL's Anime Database you feel you could help out with the most (this does not include the Character Database)
      -- which demographics and/or genre of anime you primarily watch and how (e.g.: raw, subs, dubs)

You can further demonstrate your enthusiasm and skills by contributing edits and additions to our databases regularly.
KinetaFeb 15, 12:53 PM
Oct 5, 2015 6:00 AM
#3
Kineta
Lead Admin
Faerie Queen

Offline
Aug 2007
6263
Manga DB Moderator

A Manga Moderator's duties include, but are not limited to:
  • Knowing, understanding and executing the Manga DB Guidelines.
  • Adding new/improving existing manga/people/character entries.
  • Approving/denying additions and edits submitted by users.
  • Documenting denied manga user entries via the Merges/Removals/Denials thread.
  • Monitoring the Modifications thread and Manga DB Support board regularly to answer user questions.
  • Cooperating with other mods and admins in the general maintenance of MAL's database.
  • Idling in our Discord server.

Site-wide recruitments for Manga Moderators occur approximately every 2 years.
The last recruitment ended in July 2019. The next recruitment is expected: Now (Advanced JP readers), Soon (non-JP readers).

Please add at least 5 manga entries to the database, doing your best to closely follow the Manga DB Guidelines and How to Find Manga Information threads, before submitting an open application. Then you may send my bot a PM including the following:
  • Subject: Manga DB Moderator
  • Message: Your timezone and age (must be at least 17).
  • A few sentences/paragraphs describing:
    -- yourself as a person
    -- why you are interested in the position (should include more than just "I saw you needed people")
    -- why you feel you are qualified
    -- why you are self-motivated to commit to volunteering for the community for a minimum of 1 year
    -- which aspects of MAL's Manga Database you feel you could help out with the most (this does not include the Character Database)
    -- which demographics and/or genre of manga you primarily read (e.g.: shounen, hentai)
    -- how you read manga (i.e.: raw, scanlations, licensed)
As an example: "I'm up-to-date when it comes to reading scanlations and can help add/approve new series soon after their release." or "I am well-versed in Korean and read a lot of manhwa, so I would be able to better improve this area of the manga DB." Please understand there is no right or wrong answer here, but rather is a means for us to diversify our team for better effectiveness.

You can demonstrate your enthusiasm and skills beyond an open application by contributing edits and additions to our databases regularly.
KinetaFeb 15, 2022 4:48 PM
Oct 5, 2015 6:00 AM
#4
Kineta
Lead Admin
Faerie Queen

Offline
Aug 2007
6263
Community Moderator

A Community Moderator's duties include, but are not limited to:

  • Knowing, understanding, and executing the Site & Forum Guidelines, the Board-Specific Rules (Anime & Manga and General), and our internal Forum Moderator Guidelines.
  • Checking the queue frequently for reports and dealing with issues concerning threads: duplicates, wrong boards, not following the guidelines, etc.
  • Actively moderating (reading through new and existing threads) multiple discussion boards, including Anime Discussion and/or Casual Discussion.
  • Cooperating with other moderators and admins to ensure: the same level of standard is set for all boards, sub-boards and threads on the main forum; moderation is consistent across the team; and, difficult cases are dealt with in a timely fashion with team input.
  • Idling in our Discord server.

Site-wide recruitments for Community Moderators occur approximately once per year.
The last recruitment ended in November 2023. The next recruitment is expected: Now (Accepting Apps).

If you would like to submit an open application for a Community Moderator position, please send my bot a PM including the following:

  • Subject: Community Moderator
  • Message: Your timezone and age (must be at least 18 years old).
  • A few sentences/paragraphs describing:
    -- yourself as a person
    -- why you are interested in the position (should include more than just "I saw you needed people")
    -- why you feel you are qualified
    -- why you are self-motivated to commit to volunteering for the community for a minimum of 1 year
    -- which boards you frequent most (reading/posting)
    -- what you would do if one of your friends was reported and/or you viewed them breaking the guidelines
    -- how you might improve/moderate specific boards you frequent now

You can demonstrate your enthusiasm and skills beyond an open application by conducting yourself in a manner befitting a Community Moderator, and submitting abuse reports for threads/posts which break major forum rules (i.e. abuse, not every single spam post).
TenshoApr 18, 3:34 AM
Oct 5, 2015 6:00 AM
#5
Kineta
Lead Admin
Faerie Queen

Offline
Aug 2007
6263
News Moderator

A News Moderator's duties include, but are not limited to:
  • Knowing, understanding, and executing our internal News Guidelines (soon to be made public).
  • Cooperating with other moderators and admins in keeping MAL's news up-to-date.
  • Monitoring news sources and studio/publisher websites for breaking anime/manga news.
  • Writing newsworthy articles in your own words and then posting them on MAL using our existing format.
  • Properly linking news threads to database entries.
  • Approving, denying, and editing news submitted by members.
  • Idling in our Discord server.

Site-wide recruitments for News Moderators occur approximately every 1.5 years.
The last recruitment ended in April 2019. The next recruitment is expected: Always (Advanced JP readers), Now (non-JP readers).

If you would like to submit an open application for a News Moderator position, please send my bot a PM including the following:
  • Subject: News Moderator
  • Message: Your timezone and age (must be at least 17).
  • English writing skill level (beginner, intermediate, advanced, native).
  • Japanese reading skill level (non-existent, beginner, intermediate, advanced, native).
  • A list of news sources/websites/RSS feeds you currently follow.
  • A few sentences/paragraphs describing why you are interested and why you feel you are well-suited for this position. This should include:
    -- which demographics and/or genre of anime/manga you primarily watch
    -- how you watch anime/read manga (i.e.: raw, fansubs, licensed subs, dubs)
    -- which aspects of MAL's News section you may like to see improved.

You can demonstrate your enthusiasm and skills beyond an open application by contributing news stories and/or responding helpfully in news threads.
KinetaFeb 15, 2022 4:45 PM
Oct 5, 2015 6:00 AM
#6
Kineta
Lead Admin
Faerie Queen

Offline
Aug 2007
6263
Review Moderator

A Review Moderator's duties include, but are not limited to:
  • Knowing, understanding, and executing the Review and Recommendation Guidelines.
  • Cooperating with other moderators and admins to maintain a standard level for all reviews and recommendations on MAL.
  • Checking the queue and recent reviews/recs pages frequently for troll/spam submissions.
  • Assisting users in editing and improving their reviews/recommendations.
  • Evaluating review/recommendation reports submitted by users.
  • Idling in our Discord server.

Site-wide recruitments for Review Moderators are conducted internally, and occur approximately every year.
The last recruitment ended in May 2021. The next recruitment is expected: Soon (Accepting Apps).

If you would like to submit an open application for a Review Moderator position, please send my bot a PM including the following:
  • Subject: Review Moderator
  • Message: Your timezone and age (must be at least 18 years old).
  • A number of paragraphs (use your own discretion on length) addressing:
    -- why you are interested in this position;
    -- why you think you are qualified for this position;
    -- what you feel you will bring to the team and community; and,
    -- what you feel the existing team/community/guidelines are currently lacking.
  • Any concerns you may have about meeting at least one year of active moderation.

You can demonstrate your enthusiasm and skills beyond an open application by engaging writers in a positive manner (giving constructive feedback), writing reviews yourself, and/or submitting reports for reviews/recs which break the guidelines.
KinetaFeb 15, 2022 4:46 PM
May 19, 2016 1:39 PM
#7
Kineta
Lead Admin
Faerie Queen

Offline
Aug 2007
6263
Social Media Team Member

Note: All Moderator positions on MyAnimeList are voluntary.

A Social Media Moderator's duties include, but are not limited to:
  • Knowing, understanding, and executing our internal guidelines.
  • Cooperating with other staff members to promote good community/database content on our social media pages.
  • Monitoring community activity and finding interesting content to promote.
  • Writing engaging posts in your own words.
  • Developing fresh and fun ideas for mini-polls/contests/etc. to keep the social media pages entertaining.
  • Idling in our Discord server.

Site-wide recruitments for Social Media Team Members occur approximately every year.
The last recruitment ended in May 2020. The next recruitment is expected: Now (Accepting Apps).


If you would like to submit an open application for a Social Media Team Member position, please send my bot a PM including the following:
  • Subject: Social Media Moderator
  • Message: Your timezone and age (must be at least 17 years old).
  • English writing skill level (beginner, intermediate, advanced, native).
  • A list of which social media sites you currently use (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
  • Some anime/manga industry related pages on those sites you monitor frequently (e.g. MAL).
  • A few sentences/paragraphs describing why you are interested and why you feel you are well-suited for this position. This should include:
    -- which demographics and/or genre of anime/manga you primarily watch
    -- which aspects of MAL's Social Media pages you may like to see improved.

KinetaFeb 15, 2022 4:45 PM
This topic has been locked and is no longer available for discussion.
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