Why is there so little recent and new topics on ATS anymore?

Perhaps this belongs in the rant section, but since this is a personal experience it is maybe best here.

I lurked for about a year before I joined in 2010 and it that time the forums where jumping with new subjects all the time. I would log in three times a day and still miss some of the latest stuff on ATS. But over the years since, I've noticed that I see the same old topics for days at a time. The turn over is close to zero on a day to day basis.

It used to be I would read a news story on ATS a day or two before the MSM would, if ever, report on it. Now I might as well just watch my local news station and the MSM national news because I'll get it before here these days.

My question: What has happened to make it so lame here on ATS lately?

I have been thinking of finding some new website with more going on and just checking ATS a couple of times a week, because I know I'm not going to miss much.

Seriously, I signed up because of the high standards of the moderators and the up-to-the minute main stream and alternative news stories. Now, I am thinking it is not worth so much of my time or response any more.

This is the first thread I've started in a long time so maybe others here are like me and have nothing much to say any more, but I think it must be something more than that.

Can anyone share their experiences and maybe shed some light on this?

A lot of times it slows down in the summer because folks are generally busy doing outdoor/family activities and the kids are out of school.

As far as new stories and such?? Around here, you can't win for losing. If you post up news stories that aren't conspiracy themed or extremely political you get called all kinds of ignorant for littering the board with meaningless trite. If you post threads that are constantly political then you are called all kinds of propagandist, right/left wing nut job, racist, you want children to die in the streets, etc.

It's damned if you do and damned if you don't sometimes.

Also, you are capable of posting new content and news yourself if you run up on something that interests you. Waiting for others to do it constantly may be causing exactly what you are complaining about. If everybody just sat and waited, then nothing would ever get posted.

It has been super slow for a few weeks now, but like I said above... I think it's just the time of year. It is usually much more busy in the winter months.

Just jump in there like everyone else and post 'em if you got 'em!

Quality...not Quantity. I'd rather see fewer threads from intelligent people with relevant subject matter, than a whole lot of garbage. I get your point though. It does seem in the last week or so there's not much action. I think it comes and goes in spurts. Of course evenings and weekends have more posters, it seems. Overall the quality of what does come up here is reasonably discussed and intelligently handled. I've learned a lot myself in the time I've been here.
As far as "breaking news" before it hits other sources, occasionally it shows up here quite early, but there's so much going on in the world maybe there's some "doom fatigue". So much to choose from. Yellowstone, droughts, wars, middle east, Ukraine, basically pick a country and there's something going on right now. Anyway that's just my thoughts about it.

It's a rare occasion for me when I don't find something new on ATS to challenge me to deeper thought, and when I do find myself in that situation I end up getting lost in the ATS archives.
Maybe it's because my interests are so eclectic, but I don't think I could ever run out of interesting things to read on ATS!

I'm not usually interested in starting a new thread, particularly in the news area. I suspect that it will be posted about one hour before I finish my OP.

I prefer to stick with broader topic threads that encourage discussion and the exchange of new ideas. So, in a sense, I'm part of the problem you're having. For news, if I had to pick one poster, I'd say hang on xuenchen's tail. That seems to be his specialty.

a reply to: MichiganSwampBuck

Perhaps you should be on the contributing side rather than the gleening information side. As one of the above posters replied "Quality over Quantity".
There are members who will post anything without research, just to gain stars and flags. Then there are those who you will not hear from for a few weeks or months, and then BAM!. They hit you with an epic thread.
So don't be dismayed. Be the change you want to see.

originally posted by: AreUKiddingMe
. . .
As far as "breaking news" before it hits other sources, occasionally it shows up here quite early, but there's so much going on in the world maybe there's some "doom fatigue". So much to choose from. Yellowstone, droughts, wars, middle east, Ukraine, basically pick a country and there's something going on right now. Anyway that's just my thoughts about it.

Yes, Doom Fatigue, something I considered as I wrote this. That is certainly something I have experienced lately.

originally posted by: Kratos40
a reply to: MichiganSwampBuck

Perhaps you should be on the contributing side rather than the gleening information side. As one of the above posters replied "Quality over Quantity".
There are members who will post anything without research, just to gain stars and flags. Then there are those who you will not hear from for a few weeks or months, and then BAM!. They hit you with an epic thread.
So don't be dismayed. Be the change you want to see.

So true, such gems are found through patience. I sometimes feel that I have had things to say but have withheld my thoughts on here as my efforts seem so useless in so many respects. As far as I am concerned I feel over whelmed by so much, doom fatigue as was pointed out.

You're takin it to serious. I want change. I demand change, but what I do here at ATS is for entertainment. I don't think any of us are willing to go protest. seriously? protest? naw not me. why even protest ats? they give you the goods for free. nothing is different nothing has changed. it is YOU that has changed. You have become the jaded one. I'm not at all calling you out either, maybe you are feeling that you need to spend your time more constructively, I know I myself need to. I waste ample amount of time videogaming with friends, and posting on ATS, when I should be focused on my career path. I think if anything you are just bored with the template provided, and need to spend more time feeding creative projects. Like someone else said, if you are disappointed with ATS content, then why don't you hone it to your desires, if you love/like the site that much, otherwise just step back and do something creative.

a reply to: MichiganSwampBuck

I'm probably wrong, but you mentioned: "I lurked for about a year before I joined in 2010 and it that time the forums where jumping with new subjects all the time." So my suspicion, or question is, does anyone keep track of how many new people are on here? I'm new here and have noticed many people introducing themselves as new members, and I'm not posting new topics because I'm still observing and learning and figuring out both the etiquette and the "system" itself. In that process, I've learned there are several apparent pitfalls in posting new topics that will get the new poster slammed as stupid. So, it might be quite a while before I jump in with both feet. Plus, time is a bit of a problem and I haven't had the time to thoroughly go through the "how to" instructions. As forums go, this one appears to me to be rather more sophisticated in its "tools" than others I've seen.

Thanks.

My homepage is the new topics page. So I catch everything, or so I think. Then I go to the home page and I'm like, how did I miss that.

If you don't see anything in the new topics that grab you, just go search for something. There's always more to be read.

The Mod's are not GOD's why do you kiss their butt ox? a reply to: MichiganSwampBuck

I'm personally making an effort not to vacate ATS for good.

It is now (has been?) riddled with trolls, and shills.

Alternative news is rarely welcome, and it takes balls to post anything that might be considered 'fringe',
if you do go against the grain, you must be prepared to take on twenty hounds dogs all ready aggrevate you into an emotional response - to detract from the truth, and embrace ignorance.

Over the last few years all real researchers have been bullied and plauged away from this site, leaving us with the bottom rung of internet posters.

The only people that keep this site going now are the long term, star hungry members, who steer these boards with lul cats and meaningless posts.

This is not me attacking ATS - this is me making an observation.

If i could inpart advice on anyone here, that would be PLEASE, please do not rely on ATS foryou alternative media news source, or alternative research and investigation, you will be sorely mislead.

It would be many factors honestly.

How much news worthy stuff is floating around.

How much conspiracy related stuff is going around at the time.

How busy the members are, usually certain times of the year like someone pointed out. The holidays would be a good example.

Perhaps there are less active members nowadays, though I have no idea if the site has less traffic now compared to some years back.

Over the years certain topics may lose their originality, and not much else can be said that hasn't already been said.

Maybe the site isn't as "underground" and more "mainstream." And this may attract trolls and what not. Or it might just simply be not as "cool" or "hip" anymore because of that.

And the list can go on. It's kind of hard to give one ultimate reason. I've been around the site for quite some time. Two years or so I'd say. So I can't really speak for 2010 and further back.

a reply to: AreUKiddingMe

I'd rather see fewer threads from intelligent people with relevant subject matter, than a whole lot of garbage

well you and I must get on at separate times then, because i have seen more of the later.
S&F to the OP.

originally posted by: ObservingYou
It is now (has been?) riddled with trolls, and shills. ... Over the last few years all real researchers have been bullied and plauged away from this site, leaving us with the bottom rung of internet posters. ... The only people that keep this site going now are the long term, star hungry members, who steer these boards with lul cats and meaningless posts.

Lovely. If it's so dang bad .. then nothing is keeping you here.


TO THE OP - summers are slow. The boards slow down and usually get a bunch of bored school kids jumping on for a while. ATS goes in cycles. if you want more interesting stuff ... find some. But remember that a lot of people are out enjoying the good weather at this time and are not online.

I lurked for about two years before joining. I joined because I was so interested in all the great posts each day and I wanted to be able to comment. I too found I often missed new threads as there were so many - and many of them were very interesting that I would read through them. I often stayed up way too late on weeknights reading so much!

When the site last changed it's "look" - that is when I noticed that a ton of regular posters left/stopped posting. I mean gone. The quality of topics diminished when they left. The quality of comments diminished. And the quantity of real threads went down. My nightly reading time went from an hour or two to about five minutes. I scan, I glance, I move on. "Nothing to see here" is what runs through my mind. I move on.

My appetite and interest for intriguing topics has not diminished. But the number and quality of threads has.

Do I start threads? No. But I never really have. I'm not a big poster. But I sure was a big reader. Now there's just not that much to read that is interesting and intriguing.

I don't have time myself to research topics to start threads. Guilty. But there were many who did. And they are not doing that anymore.

My concern is that without strong threads, less and less people will join that have the passion for what the site was all about.

There, I've said it.

I agree with the other responses, I think a lot people stopped creating threads because of the large group of trolls, shills, and extremely ignorant behavior I've seen. It's one thing to have a difference of opinion from someone on a thread but some people get downright nasty similar to the current political environment created by the progressive mentality, "if you don't agree with my opinion, then you are bigoted and racist." It used to be a much more friendly environment for talking about fringe or alternative topics. I think a lot of people are waiting to see if a thread gets infested with trolls and shills before becoming a part of it. Sometimes it seems as if certain threads get infested with the exact same trolls and shills, you start to see certain groups of member names and, certain avatars that when you see them you just know that this particular thread is not going to be a discussion but more of a troll fest, almost as if it is one of those paid government blogger agencies that intentionally ruin message boards like this to try to stop certain topics of discussion. Blogger agencies of this nature, actually used to be one of those topics of discussion around here.

a reply to: MichiganSwampBuck

Greetings!

Putting aside the seasonal element which plays into the flow of things around here, I think the most important thing to remember is that content is provided by the members. Therefore, it is down to each of us to make our contributions count.

Personally speaking, I try to only create a new topic, when I have a fully formed thought to express, and have researched it enough that I would not be wasting the time of my fellow members, in posting it. It is to my shame that this is not always as successful as it might otherwise be, but that is not through lack of effort, just a failure to execute a plan efficiently.

However, for my part, that means I created less threads than I might have been expected to, over the course of my membership. The same quality control measures apply to posts, but they are not the subject at hand in this thread. Now, sometimes less is more. A good steak, for example, is better than one which is merely large. However, I have noticed of late, that the new topics page seems sluggish.

That could be because threads which ARE being created, are of the sort which demand a significant outlay of members time and effort, in order to properly discuss. Sometimes a good thread can grow very quickly, and people posting in a fast moving environment like that, may find it difficult to focus on creating their own thread along side interacting as fully as possible with someone else's thread and the members posting in it.

But let us be realistic about this, the weather has been of the sort which brings people out of their homes, and indeed, out of a significant percentage of their normal clothing, and I have no doubt what so ever that there is a meteorological factor playing into all of this. On the other end of the weather effect scale, those members living in North Carolina, are, as far as I am aware, dealing with a possible hurricane situation very early in the season, a fact which did not escape one member living there, who posted a thread about his concerns. Events like these also take people away from the site, because boarding out ones windows is a priority in that situation.

Furthermore, we must remember the World Cup football tournament is being played at present, and although both the American team and the British team are out, members from other locations on the globe may well be watching matches, rather than posting threads. There are many factors which could play into this situation.

All of that said, I think it is important that if you have something to say, or there is something about which you would like to talk, that you make the thread you want to read, do the research that you would find impressive, if you were reading a thread rather than creating one. Make it happen!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As for the poster in this thread who commented negatively regarding some of the "long term, star hungry" members, I have to ask, are you serious?

Most of the people who have been here for a significant amount of time, know better than to do nothing but post lolcats, and expect to receive plaudits for doing so. Furthermore, a poster who has been here for longer, will, unless they have been singularly uncommunicative and uninvolved in contributing to the site, of course have a significant number of stars.

That does not mean that they have been posting while thinking "Damn, need to collect me some more yummy, yummy stars! What can I post that will provide me with enough to slake my lust for those luminous baubles?"

The fact is, that if people are gaining stars, it is because people liked something about their posts. So your issue is not with the members who gain stars, but the members who give them!

I agree that this place used to be a lot more cutting edge, polite, accepting, and just...well...different. Now its becoming overwhelmingly hostile, predictable, repetative, and mundane, and what I dislike most about this is my reaction to it. Maybe this is ignorant, but I blame the "FaceBookification" of ATS, at least in part.