SophieNov 8, 2022
I’m seeing long-time Mastodon folks asking people to please PLEASE use CW on posts about political topics and then I’m seeing almost no one actually do that. It’s so important to keep up with the culture of this space that was established long before many of us got here. Just use the CW!!
Show threadLee 🌏
@sophie
What is the CW ? 😳
Nov 8, 2022 at 10:50pmWeb
Show threadeswillwalkerNov 8, 2022
@MrLee When you write a toot, there are little icons below. One of the icons is "CW." It stands for content warning. You can write a headline or topic and then folks can choose whether to open your toot to read the rest of what you've written. It's also a great way to give a heading to a long toot that not everyone might care to read. Think "above the fold."
Show threadLee 🌏Nov 9, 2022
@ELS
Lovely thanks. A lot of us newbies here :-)
I'm just wondering what the advantages and disadvantages are of using CW. And when I should and shouldn't use it.
I guess the ultimate goal is not to pollute Mastodon with Negative Political Memes?
Show threadJames BaillieNov 9, 2022
@MrLee @ELS I generally use them pretty liberally for politics and other common sources of angst: I don't find there's much disadvantage to them in terms of people engaging, you'll find that some people here won't usually boost un-CWarned politics. And people are in my experience understanding if someone just fires off a personal vent without warning if that happens... it's.mostly just about giving people space to choose how they engage.
Show threadOpenDNA⚙️Nov 9, 2022

@MrLee @ELS It serves as a "read more" with a headline, hiding the body. Originally to warn of triggering content, adopted use is to allows readers to opt-in, and condenses the timeline.

Many people are sick of hearing about Trump, Musk, Brexit, AI art, are grieving the loss of a pet or loved one, etc. So giving the option to opt-in to my anti-Putin puppy photo is an act of kindness.

Show threadAlbert HerringNov 10, 2022
@MrLee Last night I posted a bunch of stuff about a football match I was following. There aren't (afaics) a lot of football people on my instance or among my handful of direct followers, so using a content warning meant I could inflict my flurry of football-related posts only on the willing (although I also put it all into a thread with unlisted posts after the opening one so there was an element of belt and braces there too)
Show threadekayNov 9, 2022
@MrLee @sophie And this is the format that a CW takes. You get a headline, and then can click through the fold. It's useful for all sorts of things, including jokes, threads, putting your lewds behind, or your wordle scores.