This just in from craigslist: Stop HR 3261 (SOPA) and S 968 (PIPA) Internet Blacklist Bills

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Stop HR 3261 (SOPA) and S 968 (PIPA) Internet Blacklist Bills

Congress needs to hear from you, or these dangerous bills will pass - they have tremendous lobbying dollars behind them, from large corporations reportedly hoping to prop up outdated, anti-consumer business models at the expense of the very fabric of the Internet -- recklessly unleashing a tsunami of take-down notices and litigation, and a Pandora's jar of "chilling effects" and other unintended (or perhaps intended?) consequences.

Monster Cable considers craigslist a "rogue site" for takedown under PIPA - they want to prevent YOU from selling your unwanted cables so they can increase sales! Many other "rights holders" want to do the same. Boycott anyone? There is an app for that.

SOPA/PIPA supporters want to block you from reaching ANY site they think is hurting their profits -- without due process or review in any court -- by (can you believe this?) interrupting Internet traffic via DNS at ISPs and by censoring search engine results. Many lawmakers are prepared to give them that right.

Congress is starting to backpedal on this anti-American nonsense, but SOPA/PIPA cannot be fixed -- they must be killed.

Sen Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Rep Ron Wyden (D-OR) are championing a sane alternative to SOPA/PIPA called Online Protection and Enforcement of Digital Trade Act (OPEN). OPEN focuses on cutting off US payments to foreign sites infringing trademark, and refrains from disrupting basic Internet protocols, or threatening mainstream US sites like craigslist.

Please let your Members of Congress know you OPPOSE H.R. 3261 "Stop Online Piracy Act" (SOPA) and S. 968 "Protect IP Act" (PIPA):

• Reverse Robocall ALL pro-SOPA MOC + Key Lobbyists simultaneously! (More info on Ars Technica)
• Phone your Member of Congress the old fashioned way (House) (Senate)
• Contact Senators who are refusing to meet with constituents about SOPA/PIPA.
• EFF Congressional Emailer - Oppose Internet Blacklisting (SOPA & PIPA)
• ECA Congressional Emailer - Don't Censor Our Internet!
• OpenCongress Congressional Emailer - Oppose SOPA
• Generic Congressional Emailer (You'll need your Zip+4)

Learn more about SOPA, Protect IP (PIPA), and Internet Blacklisting:

• Growing Chorus of Opposition to SOPA
• Open Letter against SOPA from 83 Prominent Internet Engineers
• Why SOPA and Protect IP (PIPA) are Bad, Bad Ideas (Techdirt)
• SOPA News (Google News)
• SOPA Wikipedia entry
• SOPA FAQ (CNET)

Internet Giants Consider Blackout Against SOPA!

Where does your Member of Congress stand on SOPA? (Project SOPA Opera)

Opponents of SOPA: Google, Yahoo, Wikipedia, craigslist, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, eBay, AOL, Mozilla, Reddit, Tumblr, Etsy, Zynga, EFF, ACLU, Human Rights Watch, Darrell Issa (R-CA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Ron Paul (R-TX)

Supporters of SOPA: RIAA, MPAA, News Corporation, VISA, Mastercard, Pfizer, Comcast, Time Warner, ABC, Nike, Walmart, Dow Chemical, Tiffany, Chanel, Rolex, Monster Cable, Teamsters, Lamar Smith (R-TX), John Conyers (D-MI)

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Still have questions? try our help desk discussion forum or send us a note.This just in from craigslist: 

This blog mentioned in my interview with KOMO TV Seattle.

Overzealous flagging killing the spirit of Craigslist

By Matt Markovich Published: Nov 9, 2011 at 11:17 PM PST Last Updated: Nov 10, 2011 at 12:23 PM PST

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"Just post it on Craigslist."  It’s a phrase spoken millions of times a day by sellers looking to make a few bucks off of Craigslist.

Now some say overzealous flagging by users with personal agendas is killing the spirit of Craigslist and costing well meaning sellers a chance to earn money.

Craigslist is both big and small in many ways.  Experts estimate there are 50 million new ads posted worldwide every month.  One in five Americans use it, yet it’s run by a relatively small group of 30 in San Francisco. It would be virtually impossible for 30 people to monitor ever ad that is posted.

So, from its inception in 1996, founder Craig Newmark made it clear that the free classified ad service would be moderated and edited by its users instead of Craigslist staff through a practice called "flagging."  On every ad, there is a box of links in the upper right hand corner of the webpage that give the reader the ability to flag the ad for removal. 

Each user must agree to the terms and service of Craigslist.  Within that agreement are some specific rules that outline the kind of ads that are not appropriate or prohibited such as scalping or the selling of pets.

But users like Pete Mitchell of Everett believe users are flagging ads for reasons that go well beyond the rules listed in the terms of service and Craigslist staff is letting them get away with it.

“I love playing guitar, I love making music,” says Mitchell.  Pete Mitchell is not his real name but his Craigslist handle. He fears his personal affairs would be compromised by “flagging fanatics” if his real name was used because of the “vicious and vindictive” nature of some flaggers.

“They flag every post, it’s as simple as that,” says Mitchell, who uses Craigslist to sell his homemade guitars. “You make something, you sell it.  That’s why Craigslist is here.”

But some sellers like Mitchell are in a running battle with presumably, other users who keep flagging his ads.  Only the Craigslist staff knows how many flags it takes to remove an ad --it’s been a closely held secret and never revealed publicly.

“I’ve read all the rules, I follow the rules and I still get flagged so why have rules,” says a frustrated Mitchell.

The most important rule for any seller on Craigslist to remember is a real show-stopper: Any user can flag any ad for any reason.  If a user thinks a price is too high, or doesn’t like the description or there’s a misspelling – it doesn’t matter why -- they can flag the ad.  Even if the ad is perfect in every way, it can still be flagged and removed automatically by Craigslist computers once the unknown flagging threshold has been reached.

“If you don’t like a post, move onto the next one,” says Mitchell, who believes he might be the flagging target of a competitor.

Wendy Simonsen had her ad flagged for removal as well.  She and her husband run a web-based home business called PersonalizedFree.com.

“We have over 1,400 different Christmas ornaments that we personalize with whatever the customers want,” says Simonsen.

She needed a graphic artist background to do some simple doctoring in Photoshop of pictures of her ornaments to make them suitable for posting on her website.  Craigslist charges between $25 to $75 for job wanted ads, but since Simonsen’s job was for part-time, non-regular work, she placed her ad appropriately in the creative gigs section of Craigslist.

She pays $1 a photo and it takes about five minutes to doctor each photo.  That’s $12 an hour -- more if you worker faster -- and you can work at home, when you want.  After the ad had been posted for an hour, it got flagged and removed.

“I have no idea why it got flagged.  I’m offering work ” says Simonsen. “There’s nothing controversial about it. This is a great job for moms with kids in school. There’s no reason why it should have been flagged.”

Flaggers and not required to give seller a reason why they flagged their ad. Sellers like Pete and Wendy are often left in the dark about what they need to change to avoid future flagging.

Mitchell says he’s sent Craigslist hundreds of emails asking for an explanation on why his ads keep getting flagged. “They don’t answer emails,” says Mitchell.

The Problem Solvers sent several emails and social media postings to Craigslist public relations staff, CEO Jim Buckmaster and founder Craig Newmark (who is no longer part of the day-to-day operations of Craigslist) asking for clarification on Craigslist policies. There was no response.

So frustrated sellers are left to post their requests for advice to the Flagging Forum on Craigslist, which is manned not by Craigslist staffers, but by fellow users.

“The flagging forum can be brutal,” says The Fixxer, a regular contributor to the flagging forum.  He’s referring to the rude and demeaning behavior shown by some of the “so-called helpers” toward people angry about their ads being flagged.  The Fixxer did not want us to use his real name for the same reasons as Pete Mitchell.

“People will start messing with you cause they feel you are responsible for the flagged ad,” says The Fixxer. “They will go after people in a stalker kind of way and I don’t want to be a part of that."

The Fixxer is known as a peanut – that’s a Craigslist-ism for helper.  He’s also the creator of a website called The Peanut Blogs that helps frustrated sellers avoid flagging.

“Most people have not read the terms of use, otherwise they would know why their ads were flagged,” says The Fixxer. 

“Ad-naseum” is another Craigslist-ism for people who post too often.  The Fixxer says ad-naseum could lead to automatic flagging by Craigslist computers.  He says Community Pets followed by Rants and Raves and the Personals section are the hotbeds for vicious flagging.

“People flag for emotional reasons. They flag for prices.  It’s a known fact.  They shouldn’t but they do,” says Fixxer.

Still, he says the self-policing of Craigslist by its users is working because what’s acceptable for one community of users may not be acceptable for another. 

“It’s been set up intentionally so people can decide what ads they don’t want to see,” says The Fixxer. “If you are dissatisfied for any reason, quit using it.”

Simonsen feels Craigslist should have the final say-so about ad removal and should flag the flaggers who flag too much.  “I feel these people are working against the community by flagging ads like mine,” she said.

But what keeps Craigslist users coming back is the price.  It’s free for the majority of sellers.   So keep this in mind, you get what you paid for.

“I think it’s great, when it works,” says Simonsen.

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Canada made the push for the removal of erotic services, and adult gigs. Craigslist removes them worldwide.

Craigslist removes erotic services ads By Tamara Cherry, QMI Agency

Craigslist has agreed to stop posting erotic services ads such as this one in Canada. (QMI Agency file photo) Erotic industry rolls on despite Craigslist  TORONTO – After years of police and sex-trafficking experts calling for Craigslist to crack down on the sale of people in Canada, the online advertising giant has done just that. Saturday, Craigslist removed the erotic services section from all 55 of its Canadian sites. The move came after calls from several provinces for Craigslist to remove the section as it did in the U.S. "Relieved is the best word I can say," said Benjamin Perrin, a University of British Columbia-based human trafficking expert. "It's been far too long that Craigslist has been the medium of choice for sex traffickers in Canada." Craigslist has been cited in several sex-slavery cases across Canada in which victims have been posted for sale at hourly and half-hourly rates, often by pimps who take every penny of their profits. The first human trafficking conviction in Canada involved two teenaged girls who were advertised on Craigslist. One victim, who was 17 when she escaped 2 1/2 years of sexual slavery at the hands of Imani Nakpangi, was forced to post ads for herself and a 14-year-old girl. The teens doled out sex to 10 to 15 men a day, many of whom booked their services through Craigslist ads. Though not the only medium for advertising victims, Craigslist was one of the biggest players that made it easy to hide the flesh trade indoors, said Toronto Police Det. Wendy Leaver, whose Special Victims Section solely investigates crimes against sex workers. "I think the majority of even the younger girls we deal with, those under 18, use Craigslist," Leaver said. "It was very effective in hiding them from us." While Leaver gave kudos to Craigslist for removing the ads, she added: "I'm sure something's going to pop up to take its place. "I think the problem still is what we do to curb this activity. That's the bottom line,” she said. The move by Craigslist comes after mounting pressure that began south of the border. In November 2008, Craigslist announced measures aimed at regulating those posting on the erotic services section, but only in the U.S. Craigslist removed the ads from American sites earlier this year, before different provinces and federal Justice Minister Rob Nicholson began calling for a similar move in Canada. Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster did not return requests for comment Saturday. "There's further steps that need to be taken to ensure that companies like Craigslist, as well as print media that offer loosely veiled advertisements for paid sex, are held accountable to some standard of due diligence," Perrin said. tamara.cherry@sunmedia.ca

No more erotic services, or adult gig, anywhere on craigslist worldwide.

Marissa Louie

Entrepreneur

Posted: December 17, 2010 03:32 PM

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Craigslist Saga: Sex Ads Get Pushed Elsewhere, but Kroobe Says No

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Read More: Aaron Cohen , Amber Lyon , Andrea Powell , Cnn , Craigslist , Kroobe , Salmane Saadani , Sex Ads, Impact News

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There's a disturbing problem in America: human trafficking. It involves the sale and commercial sexual exploitation of hundreds of thousands of innocent young girls. They are entered into the sex trade starting at 12 to 14 years old on average, and many are sold online on websites like Craigslist. It is modern human slavery.

What's even more surprising is that Craigslist and other online search engines including backpage (owned by the Village Voice) are not taking strong enough measures to prevent the listings made by pimps selling young girls for sex. Although Craigslist shut down its Adult Services category is the United States, the problem has migrated to three other areas:

• International Craigslist: Adult Services has only been shut down on Craigslist's U.S. sites, (Canada, especially Vancouver, currently has a very big human trafficking problem and is trying hard to convince Craigslist to stop adult listings) but not in its international sites forShenzhen, China (14 million), Lucknow, India (population 2.5 million), and Newcastle, Australia, (280,000), for example.
• On the day of the closing down of Craigslist adult services section, Craigslist sent messages (including text messages) to individuals who have posted sex ads under its Adult Services section, telling them to post the ads in a different section of Craigslist. (as reported to theFAIR Fund)
• A migration of sex ads from Craigslist over to backpage, oodle, and eBay's LoQuo.com.

On its blog, Craigslist claims that, "before being posted each individual ad is reviewed by an attorney licensed to practice law in the United States, trained to enforce Craigslist's posting guidelines."

However, anti-trafficking advocates like Andrea Powell, Executive Director of the FAIR Fund, say that they "have clear evidence that either Craigslist is not screening ads or is knowingly allowing children to be bought and sold on their web site." Powell, who is one of the most vocal figures combating human trafficking in the United States, claims that she still finds dozens of sex trafficking ads spread across various sections of Craigslist including "outcall massage" ads in the Therapeutic Services section of Craigslist. Powell says that keywords like "outcall massage" or "young" or "innocent" are posted by pimps and traffickers as a way to indicate to potential pedophiles that a minor is being sold.

What's more, sex trafficking ads appear to have migrated from Craigslist to other sites, includingoodle.com, backpage.com, and various popular social networking sites. Craigslist's own blog says that "When craigslist implemented manual screening of adult ads in May 2009, adult ads on backpage spiked by a factor of 5-10x, and you can see from the graph below that their page view traffic, which was flat until we implemented manual screening, more than quadrupled in the year following."

Unfortunately, it appears that there are high financial incentives for Craigslist and other online search engines to continue fighting to keep their adult services online sections operational. In the case of Craigslist, posters in the adult services section were asked to pay $10 to post ads. In the case of "AK" who wrote an open letter to Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist, Powell says, "Between $3000 and $4000 was made from selling AK's body. Her pimp made between $30,000 and $40,000. AK made nothing other than an occasional meal. What do you call someone who profits from the sale of another human being? A trafficker."

Businesses such as the social networking classifieds website Kroobe.com have had enough, and want to become part of the solution, not the problem. Kroobe's Founder, Salmane Saadani, hopes to start a movement where classifieds websites and social networking sites adopt strict practices to combat sex trafficking, such as manual monitoring of every ad. Kroobe has been chosen by the FAIR Fund to participate in its forthcoming best practices guidelines prepared for online search engines and businesses listings sites, which will highlight key practical best practices that responsible businesses like Kroobe have implemented.

Saadani says, "Our number one priority is to provide a safe and ethical platform for local communities to thrive, while very publicly preventing people from posting sex ads of any kind. We encourage other businesses to join us in this effort to put an end to sex trafficking."

At Kroobe, Saadani says he has set forth specific measures to combat sex ads, and especially sex trafficking ads, including: "rigorously filtering listings, providing strict categories which exclude any adult content and empowering users to participate through reviews, ratings and flags. These measures are consistent with the FAIR Fund developed best business practices to reduce the commercial sexual exploitation of minors online."

Currently, Kroobe.com does not charge users to post classifieds ads on its website.

Aaron Cohen, author of Slave Hunter and founder of AbolishSlavery.org, says that it is the corporate responsibility of classifieds websites like Craigslist to "allocate 15 to 20% of corporate profits to monitoring (sex ads)." He advocates that "companies should research the percentage of their budget that it would take to stop the trafficking."

Both Cohen and Powell have expressed their hope that Craigslist, Backpage, and others would hear their advice and follow the example of newcomers like Kroobe that manually monitor ads and systematically limit the possibility of sex ads being published on their websites.

Follow Marissa Louie on Twitter: www.twitter.com/malouie