Guidelines
Clay Aiken: Great voice. Hottie. Good guy. Huge. On those general points, we probably agree. But on the specific how, why and what, it would be kind of boring if we saw exactly eye to eye. He is going to make choices that different people receive and understand in different ways, ranging from positive to negative. We accept and understand that here. In fact, we celebrate that here. We celebrate diversity and discussion. We celebrate humor, whether it is directed at Clay, at other artists or at ourselves. We do snark, but it is with affection, and always with the recognition that the objects of our snark are human beings.
Your fellow poster: We're lucky to have been brought together, by Clay Aiken, by our interest in sales, and now, by the spirit of the HDD community. We are committed to maintaining that spirit of respectful discussion and agreement and disagreement. We do not tell each other what to think or what to post. We respond to the content of each other's post, without judging the poster. We don't take disagreement personally. We also give each other the benefit of the doubt. And we do not box each other in based on age, board affiliation(s), gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, or anything else. We don't do stereotypes here.
We treat each other as adult individuals, whose opinions have equal worth.
Why we're here, and what's on-topic: As said above, we are united by our Clay Aiken fandom, by our interest in his place in the music/entertainment industry, and by our curiosity about the music/entertainment industry in general. So, that's what we talk about here -- Clay Aiken, and the context in which he operates as an artist and as an entertainer. Our board features a main discussion area with threads for focused discussion on Clay news and other topics, as well as a linear thread centered on the Hits Daily Double building album sales chart. In the course of tracking the HDD chart, and the subsequent unveiling of the Billboard charts on Wednesday and Thursday of each week, we invariably discuss trends in the music industry, other artists, and other events that take place in Clay's career. Typically, the discussion will eventually make its way back to Clay, the man and the voice who brought us together in the first place. But we do meander, and so, there isn't too much that is considered off-topic.
What's off-topic: Because we celebrate discussion, we aim to keep this list as short as possible. However, a few ground rules are in order. First, we will avoid tarring other boards with a broad negative brush. Keep in mind that we have many multi-board posters, and you may unwittingly be disparaging them. Moreover, we are committed to maintaining cordial relations with other Clay fan boards.
Second, we do not speculate on anyone's sexual orientation.
Third, religion and politics are two issues about which people can get very passionate and emotional. It becomes very difficult to avoid taking disagreement personally when it comes in those two areas. With that in mind, we're going to avoid debates about religion and politics on this board. However, faith (or a lack thereof) can represent an important underpinning to an individual's perspective, and posters are allowed to reference their faith in a personal context, as long as it is clear that their intent is not to persuade or convert. If you're unsure about the application of this rule, please PM a mod/admin.
Fourth, we are committed to maintaining Clay's privacy. We will not post about Clay's whereabouts unless he is making an announced public appearance (as in, a concert or a TV show). We will not carry over posts from other boards that say where he has gone shopping, walking, eating, etc. We will certainly not post his address. We will also not post about the contents of his car, shopping cart, computer hard drive, etc. If you see any such post, on this board or another, please PM a mod about it so that s/he can arrange for it to be deleted as soon as possible.
2012 Update -- We have revisited the current sighting rule ... especially in light of Twitter and Clay now having an account ... we have decided that it is a little silly to say you can't post a report that the whole world can see anyway on Twitter. However, please use your discretion and try to respect Clay's right to privacy on his private time. NO sightings and or twit pics of Clay and Parker out on the town or in their back yard.
What if someone flouts the rules?: If you see a post that you believe violates board rules, just PM a moderator. The moderator will either edit/delete the post, or explain to you why the post is fine. Do not post to tell the original poster what to do.
In the event of a rules violation, the mods will simply warn the offending poster by PM, or, if necessary, suspend the offending poster's account for whatever length of period deemed necessary.
Fun and feedback: Clay fandom is supposed to be fun. So enjoy this place! The moderators are here to ensure that you can do so. If you have questions and concerns, you can always PM a mod.
-Don't take other people's opinions as instructions on how you should feel. If someone says s/he likes a song, s/he is NOT telling you that you should like the song, too. If someone says s/he doesn't like a song, s/he is NOT telling you that you shouldn't like the song, either. It's just expressing an opinion about a song in the course of conversation. This isn't a debate where a judge or jury decide who is right at the end of the day.
-It is NOT OK to say that a certain opinion is bumming you out. If it were OK to say something like, "It hurts my heart to read how people don't like '1000 Days,' then it would also be OK to say something like, 'It hurts my heart to read how people have such low standards that they'll accept less than the best songs for Clay, even a song like '1000 Days' though it doesn't live up to his amazing talent." The thing is, NEITHER COMMENT IS OK ACCORDING TO CV RULES. If you find yourself writing about your reaction to someone else's opinion instead of just writing about your own opinion of Clay and his music, stop yourself -- you shouldn't be posting.
-Watch your language: Don't use words like "over-analytical" or "over-critical" or "negativity." If you find yourself inclined to do so, think of how much you would enjoy seeing your opinions characterized as "mindless," "thoughtless" or "blindly positive." All of the aforementioned terms are loaded and dismissive. One person's "over-analytical" is another person's honest, well-thought-out opinion. One person's "mindless" adulation is another person's honest, well-thought-out opinion.
-Watch your language, part two: When expressing an opinion, read the room, and realize that if you exaggerate or use inflammatory language, it is going to distract from the point that you are trying to make. So don't do it.
-Disclaimers like "I'm just venting" or "This is just my opinion" don't excuse breaking the rules. So if you want to say that it hurts you (or that you think it would hurt Clay) to read critical comments of a song (or to read people blindly loving a song just because he's singing it), saying that you're just venting or that this is just your opinion does NOT make it OK to post. The aforementioned comments are against the rules, no matter what.
What about respecting Clay?: The admins are often asked whether CV-ers are expected to apply the same standards of respect to Clay (and his associates) that we apply to each other. That should indeed be our guide. That means that we should feel free to agree/disagree with things that he says (and, in his case, the professional choices that he makes), but it's not our place to judge the man as "good" or "bad," just as it is against the rules to judge your fellow poster.
What if Clay reads CV? The admins have no clue whether Clay and/or his associates read this board, but we will say that we could not care less. Whether or not Clay/his people may read this board does not and will not condition what we, personally, say on this board, nor does it condition the rules or admin enforcement of the rules on this board. Our rules exist so as to facilitate board discussion, not so that we can impress anyone. Ditto admin enforcement of the rules.
What's the difference between criticizing something Clay does and disrespecting him?: First of all, there IS a difference between the two, as far as CV rules are concerned. Not everyone is going to agree with or love/like everything Clay does. It just isn't going to happen. And people can still be fans of and love Clay despite disagreeing or not liking something he does. We DO NOT allow the questioning of any CV-er's fandom over disagreement or dislike of something Clay does. Doing so is probably your quickest way to an admin edit and a pissy admin PM.
But if you're going to be critical or disagree with something Clay does, then there's an extra onus on you. This is the reality of being on a fan board. At any given moment, the majority of people on this board are going to agree with and/or like something Clay does and disagree with criticism. Given that you can anticipate this, it is incumbent on you as a poster to phrase your criticism in a constructive manner—in a manner that will facilitate respectful discussion. For practical purposes, that means we are going to have "EEEEEEE!!!!"s and "THUD"s and "GAH" posts that don't require further explication, while "EWWWWWWW" and "BLECH" posts do. Like we said, it's the nature of the fan board. And, it's the nature of human interaction—praise often requires less defense and explication than criticism, because for criticism to be constructive, it needs to identify a better alternative, and/or show the way to get there.
So, if you're going to make a criticism of something Clay did, for a good discussion to ensue, you need to describe to what you prefer (for example, if you hate his hair on any given day, show a picture of what you prefer). People may then debate whether they prefer your preference. *g* In an ideal world, praise of Clay will also be specific about what it is about Clay or a choice he made that appeals.
What do I need to remember when posting as part of a CV discussion?: When we're posting, it needs to be about more than just expressing our opinion. It needs to be about expressing our opinions in ways that will facilitate a good discussion. It needs to be about exchanging views, rather than hearing the sound of our own voices. CV is not a place for you to just drop off your opinion without committing to really listen to what other people think -- the conversation is meant to be truly interactive. As a consequence, once you've stated your opinion on a subject once or twice, it's time to back off unless someone asks you a follow-up question or you really have something new to say.
And remember that tone makes a big difference. We're talking about an entertainer/artist here, not global peace and security. Repetitive garment-rending over any Clay issue is just going to make fellow posters take you less seriously, in contrast to temperate and well-thought-out explanations of why you don't care for something, which will actually keep discussion going. Bluntness isn't going to serve you well here.
Generally speaking, everyone needs to avoid declaratives, because they make it seem like you are stating opinions as facts. So just posting, "You're wrong" without saying why or "That's not true" without saying why" isn't an acceptable response. That requires more effort on our part, but we think it's a responsibility that every poster here needs to take on.
"National Inclusion Project" Fundraising Rules: CV Circle of Inclusion fundraiser announcements/reminders and "National Inclusion Project" direct fundraiser announcements/reminders may be posted both in the Outreach Forum and the main HDD thread. These announcements/reminders will be made by the CV Outreach Forum moderators only. Fundraiser announcements/reminders, sponsored by chapters other than the CV Circle of Inclusion, may be posted in the Outreach Forum only, also by CV Outreach Forum moderators. If you are involved with a "National Inclusion Project" chapter fundraiser (other than the CV Circle of Inclusion) and would like details of it posted in the Outreach Forum, please contact an Outreach Forum moderator via PM.
As always, if you have questions about this, feel free to PM an admin or use our Rules Feedback forum.