# Why is the SDMB membership declining, and what's the best way to add younger members? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [June 14, 2021, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208 "2021-06-14T02:28:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 28
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/545 "2021-07-12T11:54:30Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > IOW, we’re in a rut because our culture is in a rut. When your single greatest achievement as a country in a 20-year span was that time a college kid expanded his ‘hot or not’ website, yeah, you’re in a rut. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/546 "2021-07-12T12:07:43Z")
I feel like we’ve done a lot more than create Facebook in that time. Cloud computing has gotten really good, for instance. ---
**Author:** ![Enjoy\_Slurm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enjoy_slurm/32/3937_2.png) [@Enjoy\_Slurm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enjoy_Slurm)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/547 "2021-07-12T15:51:25Z")
We created the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That’s pretty dope. ---
**Author:** ![Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/do_not_taunt/32/2968_2.png) [@Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Do_Not_Taunt)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/548 "2021-07-12T16:39:28Z")
Facebook is a step down from hot-or-not, not an improvement. But on the plus side, I’d add the entire mobile internet. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/549 "2021-07-12T17:53:07Z")
For all those who keep talking about getting rid of the Pit, I’ll just repeat what I said in another thread: _This is why I don’t think shutting down the Pit would do any good. Some people think because you aren’t allowed to use insults, everything will be just fine. That’s not true. If anything, I’ve seen far more offensive things posted outside of the Pit than I ever have inside._ _We’ve seen posters who were just as hateful and disgusting outside of the Pit and STILL manage to stay inside the rules, or at least avoid being banned. So I don’t think getting rid of it would do any good._ _(I don’t know about you, maybe I’m nuts, but I’d a million times rather be called a “bitch” or told to “go fuck a cactus” than to read some of the hateful, misogynist crap that has infested this place over the past few years. I think THAT’S driven far more people away than anything else. YMMV. And yes, I’m aware bitch is misogynist – it’s simply the first insult that came to mind. Point is, I’d rather be called names than read posts from rape apologists and incels)_ ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/550 "2021-07-12T18:00:39Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > For all those who keep talking about getting rid of the Pit, I’ll just repeat what I said in another thread: No one is talking about “getting rid of the Pit”. Many of us are simply asking that the Pit have the same rules as the general rules for this Message board. And i do not see why or even how stopping insults would somehow increase the amount of \*hateful, misogynist crap". I am all in favor of trying to control “hateful, misogynist crap”. The two issues are totally separate. Oh, and _Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye ; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye ?_ ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/551 "2021-07-12T18:21:01Z")
I didn’t realize ‘Get rid of the Pit!’ was the boards ‘Defund the Police’! ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/552 "2021-07-12T18:49:06Z")
Defund the Pit! ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/553 "2021-07-12T19:00:38Z")
Pit the Police! ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/554 "2021-07-12T20:16:33Z")
Pitt the Younger! ---
**Author:** ![OldOlds](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a3d4f5/32.png) [@OldOlds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldOlds)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/555 "2021-07-13T00:38:32Z")
I think I’ve said this before, but I think the board’s greatest strength is that we have rules of debate and decent moderation. Expecting people to provide cites for their claims is a great example. Whatever one might say about this place’s flaws, I don’t see many with better discussions. I find Reddit awful. No thank you. Regarding bringing in younger/newer members, there are 330 million Americans and if 0.01% were of the sort that would fit in here, we’d be pretty active. And of course, we’d welcome folks from other parts of the world as well. My point is that it’s about exposure, not interest. Rule 34 proves that, I think. I once saw this place mentioned on a Disquss comment section over at The Hill (I started a thread here about it). Maybe we should all do our part by evangelizing at the other places we visit. It will send some numbnuts here, but they’ll wash out soon enough. I do agree that the culture here is a bit intimidating, but if the sort of place this is interests you, you’ll lurk and learn your way around. I lurked for about 3 years before joining in 2003. We could be nicer to newbies, though. Finally, I’ll agree that I don’t like seeing pile-ons of posters in the Pit. This place is better than that. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/556 "2021-07-13T01:34:05Z")
> [@codinghorror](#): > > We have an existing business relationship with Snopes. Can’t hurt to ask them… Do not, do not, do not go to Snopes to keep a messageboard alive! They killed their own boards. Archives and all. ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/557 "2021-07-13T06:05:49Z")
I have been a member of the SDMB for over 20 years (wow), since I was 12 or 13. At 34, I guess I arguably don’t count as a “younger member” anymore. The SDMB in the early 2000s was really a great place for a teenager - I learned things and had conversations I’d never be able to have in the real world or anywhere else on the internet for that matter, and I genuinely believe the SDMB made me a better person. I’ve never been that prolific but I consistently lurked and continued to participate at a pretty steady rate. But my interest in this place dramatically waned during the Trump years. I hate Trump and what he represents but I’m also not a fan of most Democratic policies. Aside from the fact that participating in any directly political threads just turns into a huge unpleasant pile-on against me, even the non-political threads are tiresome. People constantly find ways to slip in leftist political remarks in any thread regardless of topic and you get slapped down as being off-topic if you ever take the bait and respond to something you fundamentally object to. I got tired of constantly having to bite my tongue so I don’t hang out here much anymore. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/558 "2021-07-13T13:00:20Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Look what happened to CNN: In 2015 it became the anti-Trump network, and ratings went up a bit, but they lost the Conservatve half of their audience. But now that Trump is gone, the left isn’t all that interested in them any more either, and their ratings are down 70% and still falling. > > We are in the post-Trump doldrums. But the SDMB was doing better BEFORE Trump was political figure. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/559 "2021-07-13T14:12:50Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > messageboard No matter what the problem is, the solution is always: More conservative viewpoints Tax cuts ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/560 "2021-07-13T14:23:22Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > But the SDMB was doing better BEFORE Trump was political figure. Trump caused more (much more) polarisation, and more polarisation leads to crappier and less constructive debate. I was struck by this while reading the comments section of a blog today. There were lots of long, thoughtful and constructive comments, and few snarky one-liners or trite dismissals of other people’s viewpoints. The Dope used to be more like the former, but debates here have been increasingly taken over by the latter. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/561 "2021-07-13T17:03:43Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > No matter what the problem is, the solution is always: > > More conservative viewpoints > Tax cuts I don’t see what that has to do with the post of mine that you replied to. (I also don’t know whether it’s meant to be sarcastic.) ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/562 "2021-07-13T17:27:08Z")
Oops! Replied to the wrong post. And yes, was supposed to be sarcastic. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/563 "2021-07-13T17:54:30Z")
What blog was this? ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2021, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/564 "2021-07-13T20:31:00Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > Another model, Snopes, has content, but I don’t think they have a message board and maybe they made the determination that they don’t want forum wars to become a distraction that takes focus away from their content. Snopes used to have a thriving message board based on fighting ignorance (specifically fact checking urban legends), but now it’s just the articles. The history of Snopes is sort of like the Straight Dope, but in reverse. I believe @thorny_locust mentioned that she came here from the Snopes forum, after it shut down. ~Max [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208.md?page=27) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208.md?page=29)