Introducing new /r/pics title guidelines
Revision 2.1 - These new rules are part of the permanent ruleset.A few weeks back, we ran a 1 week trial of some new rules on titles. They were generally well recieved and the data we gathered pushed support for the new rules.We took some time to discuss and look at what worked and what didn't. We took feedback from mods and users alike, and we worked in suggested changes and feedback into the new ruleset.With that in mind, we settled on some guidelines and are ready to update our ruleset with these rules in mind.In a nutshell, we have replaced rule 4 and removed rule 5, since both rules have been combined into one.These rules are guidelines on titles and not content. Anything removed under this new rule is for the title. Meaning that any user can repost their picture with a fixed up title.Here are our title guidelines:must convey accurate informationmust not ask for votesmust not be about a "cake day"must not request a photoshop/editmust not ask for general information or feedbackmust not be "designed to elicit sympathy"must not be cliched/forbidden title, located at /r/pics/w/titles/forbiddenWith these new wordings, we have cut the trial ruleset down from 13 to its present state of 7. You may also notice that we have removed the restriction on reply posts. Ultimately, we deicided that reply posts were best left out of these guidelines, since it often related to the content rather than the title. We also realized that some of the most treasured posts in /r/pics history were reply posts.We will look at reply posts another time, for now, they come through unscathed.You will also notice we have changed the way we handle cliched titles. A bit point of feedback was that the cliched title rule was unclear and could be twisted by a rouge moderator to basically remove anything. We have solved this by making it an explicit list, rather than a general catch-all. We will update this list regularly. We may update it without announcement, but ill be sure to cover it in monthly transparecny reports if we do.You can see the list of forbidden titles at /r/pics/w/titles/forbiddenYou can see the general rules on titles at /r/pics/w/titlesI also wanted to touch on a few notes about guideline 6 - This is a broad rule, but we will work hard to make sure we enfore this fairly and transparently.One thing I want to highlight is that mentioning loss or death on its own does not qualify a title to be removed. Statements of fact are generally accepted. For example:My late grandfather left me his watchThis would not be considered a violation. Just mentioning loss does not qualify someone for removal. In addition, general statements of fact on current events are fine as well.City block leveled in Syria after bombing runis a statement of fact about current events, and would not be considered a rule violation.As an example of titles that do violate the rule:My old border collie can't run anymore. But after all this time she still loves her toy even though she can't play with it.I would consider this one a bit borderline, but there are many, many better ways to write this title.My brother loved going to conventions. RIP, buddy.Again, a rewrite would be good here.We understand this will inevitably rub some people the wrong way, so we will be working hard with users to make sure they understand posts can be re-posted, and these rules are a step toward a higher quality subreddit. We will make people angry no matter what we do, but we feel this is the best step in the right direction.If you have any questions about this rule, please don't hesitate to ask us down below or via modmail.
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