Responsibility in Information Posting

[BoddaH1994]

This is a friendly reminder that posting any information, regardless of how you obtain it, that has not yet been released by Kings Island is a violation of your Terms of Service with KICentral. Any violation of this rule will result in a permanent removal from the site.

This includes, but is not limited to:

• Linking to areas of the park's web site that have not been made public.
  
• Releasing information before it is made public.
  

[Beast1979]

Aww, I kinda enjoy all of the insider tips from people's mother's sister's daughter's boyfriend's dads who tell me that Drop Tower was installed upside down!

[RingMaster]

Don't worry; you still have the Dippin' Dots/Lemon Chill Guy and Cabana Girl to tell you everything you need to know...

[The Interpreter]

Some people need to be more selective in what they post...

[LongliveKingsCobra]

Terpy was that a...uh...giveaway? I kinda think so.

[bkroz]

Perhaps! But in true Terp fashion, we must ask... where's the proof?

GYK, who wishes he had The Interpreter's gift of choosing his words very, very carefully.

[CoasterKrazy]

Perhaps Kings Island should better protect their information, rather than trying to put the cat back in its flimsy bag?

[KIfan1980]

Sure feels like I missed a since deleted topic or something.

Response to CoasterKrazy - yes, KI should protect their information if they don't want it to become public. The management of KIC, however, also has a right to include in the Terms of Service (that posters agreed to abide by when signing up) that non public information will not be shared on these boards. If it, as it seems to, helps them retain a positive relationship with KI - why wouldn't they?

There are many other places where these rules don't apply. They do here.

[BoddaH1994]

Think of it this way:

If you're at a restaurant and you leave your cell phone sitting on the bar, it'll probably be stolen. Yeah, it's your own dumb fault for leaving your cell phone sitting out, but it doesn't make the person who stole it any less guilty.

[Dbfan]

^ That happened to a certain Apple Employee.

[BoddaH1994]

^ That happened to a certain Apple Employee.

That was staged.

[The Interpreter]

And nothing that is ever 'leaked' by someone not with a park is ever, ever staged.

We all know that. And make no bones about it.

[CoasterKrazy]

With regard to situations like the infamous Swan Lake cell phone photos from Diamondback's construction, I completely agree with the TOS and understand its purpose. Those photos were taken from a restricted area, and were therefore a violation of this site's rules, the park's rules, and probably a few applicable laws.

When it comes to a website, however, I feel that if the park has yet to learn how easy it is to come across a site with unreleased information, then they should expect that it will be released if found. If some sort of hack was used in order to enter the Haunt site, then that information was obtained illegally and the removal of that post was entirely justified. If however, it was accessed by simply changing a few numbers in a URL or altering the date on one's computer (tricks enthusiasts have used for years now), the site was easily accessible and the park is responsible for whatever information was leaked.

I understand this is far from an important matter, and I fully support the TOS. I just like to see the little guy "stick it to the man" every once in a while.

[Thrill_Biscuit]

I think it's much more fun to speculate and debate possibilities than to peek under the tent and spoil the surprise.

^^ @Terpy - I agree. You couldn't have couched that any more clearly.

[acbjones1983]

What benefit does this site (or its owners) get from weeding out speculative information being leaked from it's members?

Kickbacks? Media privileges?

If so, is Kings Island playing the Big Brother of this site, effectively deciding what unreleased information is discussed? (Lets be honest... many of the topics on this site are speculative rumors. The park likes this discussion because it fosters interest in the park on a social networking level)

While the TOS are the laws that govern the site, it seems like KICentral's ownership is bowing down to Kings Island and allowing them to set the TOS, which in-turn limits discussion on unreleased information. Seems as though the park (A.K.A. DON) can cry foul to his buddy Boddah whenever it's imaginary line is crossed.

While I admire the founders, owners, and administrators of this site, and have enjoyed reading this site for many more years than I have been a member, I hope that the adherence to the TOS does not censor discussion or hinder the leaking of rumors that are obtained in a legal fashion.

Just my thoughts on a topic that has, for some reason, really irritated me.

[Thrill_Biscuit]

I think the owners of this site are allowed to control content in any way they want to, and we as members are free to go elsewhere if we don't like the constraints.

[DegenRider]

Pretty much you play by KI's rules or KIC loses privlages. Such is life

[The Interpreter]

Completely agreed. It is no different if one is a reporter covering softer issues like theme parks. Get too critical or too revealing and you will find your access restricted, at best. That's life. Actually, it is little different if you are a White House Press Pool reporter, for that matter.

As A. J. Liebling said, "Freedom of the press belongs to the man who owns one."

[KIfan1980]

There was a recent story about a reporter who wore a Florida hat to an Arkansas coaches press conference as a journalist covering Arkansas. She ended up without a job I believe.

[The Interpreter]

Indeed:

http://espn.go.com/b...de-of-the-story

http://www.swtimes.com/columns/john_brummett/article_e8832088-ab95-11df-b6b3-001cc4c002e0.html

[standbyme]

I think the owners of this site are allowed to control content in any way they want to, and we as members are free to go elsewhere if we don't like the constraints.

I 100% agree with you...but that shouldn't mean that we can't voice our concerns about the policies.

Get too critical or too revealing and you will find your access restricted, at best...

Hasn't that already happened?

This site didn't even post a rumor about the WindSeeker announcement before it was also released everywhere else...in the "good ol' days" we would have been talking about a rumored upcoming announcement for weeks.

The sad thing is that even if a "regular member" knew about the upcoming announcement they couldn't have posted it without revealing their source...has anyone seen/read Catch 22?!!

This site's moderators have ALWAYS bragged how there isn't another theme park site like KIC...but they have lost touch in why that was true. Has anyone else noticed how posting seems to have been WAY down this summer...can you imagine the off-season?

[KI FANATIC 37]

I think the owners of this site are allowed to control content in any way they want to, and we as members are free to go elsewhere if we don't like the constraints.

I 100% agree with you...but that shouldn't mean that we can't voice our concerns about the policies.

Get too critical or too revealing and you will find your access restricted, at best...

Hasn't that already happened?

This site didn't even post a rumor about the WindSeeker announcement before it was also released everywhere else...in the "good ol' days" we would have been talking about a rumored upcoming announcement for weeks.

The sad thing is that even if a "regular member" knew about the upcoming announcement they couldn't have posted it without revealing their source...has anyone seen/read Catch 22?!!

This site's moderators have ALWAYS bragged how there isn't another theme park site like KIC...but they have lost touch in why that was true. Has anyone else noticed how posting seems to have been WAY down this summer...can you imagine the off-season?

I have noticed that. I haven't been posting lately because there is no things on here that intesrest me as much ad they used too. I think that starts a chain reaction so not a lot of people are doing what I am doing.....

[faeriewench]

Has anyone else noticed how posting seems to have been WAY down this summer...can you imagine the off-season?

I have, and I thought it was because the attitude of others who think their s**t don't stink. That was the turnoff for me.

[windshawne]

I think the owners of this site are allowed to control content in any way they want to, and we as members are free to go elsewhere if we don't like the constraints.

I 100% agree with you...but that shouldn't mean that we can't voice our concerns about the policies.

Get too critical or too revealing and you will find your access restricted, at best...

Hasn't that already happened?

This site didn't even post a rumor about the WindSeeker announcement before it was also released everywhere else...in the "good ol' days" we would have been talking about a rumored upcoming announcement for weeks.

The sad thing is that even if a "regular member" knew about the upcoming announcement they couldn't have posted it without revealing their source...has anyone seen/read Catch 22?!!

This site's moderators have ALWAYS bragged how there isn't another theme park site like KIC...but they have lost touch in why that was true. Has anyone else noticed how posting seems to have been WAY down this summer...can you imagine the off-season?

There ought to be a "like" button for this post...you summed it up my friend. I love the people I have met on this site, but there are some topics I don't post in anymore, because it will get censored or removed. Honestly, this stuff isn't national security. I enjoy how HW and others keep the public in the loop on their upcoming projects-makes me feel more involved in their coaster "family".

[TylerRider]

I think it's much more fun to speculate and debate possibilities than to peek under the tent and spoil the surprise.

^^ @Terpy - I agree. You couldn't have couched that any more clearly.

Yes that would be Steve McNair skeleton on a couch by Diamondback impossible.

Not very good with puns.

[XGatorHead 8904]

Aww, I kinda enjoy all of the insider tips from people's mother's sister's daughter's boyfriend's dads who tell me that Drop Tower was installed upside down!

I don't think you have anything to worry about, now that we have people posting that WindSeeker may be increased to 400 ft: http://www.KICentral...ndpost&p=402242

I'm sorry, I just find posts like that one to be completely idiotic and irresponsible.

[BoddaH1994]

This site didn't even post a rumor about the WindSeeker announcement before it was also released everywhere else...in the "good ol' days" we would have been talking about a rumored upcoming announcement for weeks.

Call me out of the loop, but I didn't know about the WindSeeker announcement until the day before when I got a text message about it from a park official. If someone had posted a rumor about an announcement, it would have stayed. I looked through our moderation logs and no threads involving a 2011 announcement had been removed in the days or weeks leading up to the actual announcement.

And for those who like to play the "I've known about this for months" game, which oddly seems to surface immediately following an announcement, only a handful of people in the park knew about the announcement until about a week leading up to it.

This site's moderators have ALWAYS bragged how there isn't another theme park site like KIC...but they have lost touch in why that was true. Posted Image Has anyone else noticed how posting seems to have been WAY down this summer...can you imagine the off-season?

KICentral's unique visitors, page views and forum activity have grown exponentially month-to-date on a year-over-year basis since its inception in 2003. This year is no exception. Maybe one day in the future when the information isn't relevant any longer I can tell you guys exactly how many people see this site every year. I can tell you this though - it's a lot. Well beyond the wildest dreams that Dane and I had when when started this crazy venture almost exactly seven years ago.

KICentral was, and continues to be, a very unique experience for its users. This is something that has been molded for the better part of a decade by you - the users - not by us. I can not tell you how many hundreds of friends - real life friends - I have made through this site, and many others share a similar anecdote. It's very rare that a site dedicated to one simple seasonal theme park has the numbers to make claims like that.

Furthermore, the moderation on this site by almost all accounts is extremely lite. For example, we state that political discussions are not allowed on the boards. I probably get two dozen emails a day from reported posts about a topic that could be considered political, but more often than not I let it slide. Why? Because as long as there is an intelligent discussion then there is no harm and no foul. Heck, some people may even learn a thing or two. Lord knows I've learned a lot from reading many peoples' posts. This holds true for most moderation rules here. Very little is set in stone. Ultimately, we are the ones who made the decisions, and sometimes they're hard decisions to make but that's part of the job.

[stewwill]

While I disagree with the policy, this KIC's ballbark, you know the rules, you play by them or you go elsewhere.

[The Interpreter]

It is best to remember that if there were no such policy, this site may not even be here. Many other parks have virtually forced fan sites to close down. It happens...

Some have even started competing sites in an attempt to control what is and is not posted, and moderated them heavily, while others have started competing sites then virtually ignored them.

[Captain Picard]

I heard a story about a park saying it was going to force a fan site to close down. I don't think it would have helped their competing site if they did.