In BBQ, why mod a hint at a racist joke but not an actual racial slur?

[Max_S]

@Tamerlane

Actually you have that completely backwards. This board was originally moderated on a principle of lack of well-defined rules, with “don’t be a jerk” being more or less the only guiding rule and moderators having fairly unlimited leeway on how to define that. It has been moving steadily towards more bright-line rules because unfortunately the behavior of some has kind of demanded it.

From the horse’s mouth,

@Ed_Zotti

“Don’t be a jerk” is the guiding principle behind our rules. It’s not, in itself, an enforceable rule. Everyone has a different notion of what constitutes jerkishness. To avoid endless arguments, we’ve tried to come up with bright line rules that are clear to all.

@Ed_Zotti

No hate speech

If you say hateful and/or racist things, you may get warned or banned. Some slurs are likely to be viewed as hate speech when used as insults, some aren’t. No, we aren’t going to give you a list. Our goal is not to restrict any and all speech which could be viewed by someone as offensive, but simply keep a modicum of decency, even here.

Emphasis,

Some slurs are likely to be viewed as hate speech when used as insults, some aren’t.

~Max