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Like Mr. Baggins I have things to do that I've put off for far too long. I'm going to step down as a moderator of the wonderful Movies & TV StackExchange. I have for the past 12.5 years, about 9.5 of them as a moderator, put a lot of time and effort into this site, I would hope and do think for the better of it. However, that investment has also decreased quite a bit over recent years, so it is time to move on now.

I have gained some very enlightening insights into films and TV-shows and myself written a lot of things I can be and am proud of. This site has been both an insightful resource and a wonderful outlet for discussing movies and TV. And while I sure had some run-ins with users over these years (rarely a moderator doesn't), the overall interactions on this site have been fruitful and I also met people who have genuinely enriched my life beyond the mere trappings of this site.

It is no secret that I'm not convinced recent developments are good for the site's future and part of stepping down is simply not having to worry about this anymore or having to take responsibility for what's to come. Being a moderator requires a degree of emotional investment into the fate of the site that I can't really bear if I find it heading in the wrong direction. However, this isn't some form of protest, neither is this development likely to stop nor would I want to take the site hostage in such a way (or think that would even work). I would probably have pulled this through even in the case that we had reached a unanimous agreement to keep identification questions banned (which I realistically didn't expect to happen, though). I've been pondering on this for longer than these past few weeks and worrying developments of SE as a whole over the last few years, together with my waning activity on the site, have helped to make this decision easier.

It is a bit unfortunate to leave the site in somewhat of a limbo like that and kind of put it back where it was decades ago on this controversial issue, but I also have to admit that I'm glad I don't actually have to care about it anymore and I'm ultimately not willing to carry its future direction. I do think, however, the community will be able to figure out how to proceed and make the site into what they think it ought to be. And who knows, I've also been opposed to other major developments of the site which turned out for the better. But I don't have to hope for that anymore.

As an appeal to the entire community, though, please don't let this issue create more of a rift than it needs to be. If you're in favour of these questions, try to make them work and show everyone that it was a good decision for the future of the site to bring them back. But also don't begrudge users who still have their genuine concerns about them, this has always been a controversial issue and likely will be for the foreseeable future. If you've been against them, try to see the positive in those questions and make the best of them now that they're here to stay and remember that most users asking them aren't aware of your concerns. And if you really can't take it, don't be afraid to count your losses and move on, but this doesn't have to be an all-or-nothing decision either, your user account doesn't run away.

This is also not some kind of internal disagreement among the moderator team. I am very thankful for having worked with all of them and we have always been very much in agreement about the moderation and leadership of this site, minor disagreements about minor issues notwithstanding. I'm very happy that we also agree on this final decision and I might not have to take this step alone.

This does, however, not mean I will vanish entirely. Like Mr. Baggins, I've merely been stripped of a burden but the Grey Havens are still far away. I certainly won't delete my account nor the contributions I am still proud of. I'll try to stay around. And maybe not having to look for quality or moderation issues around every corner will also help to rekindle some interest into the site's topic itself, provided it does survive.

So in remembrance of one of the best experiences I had on this site during all these years, it's time to move on to new worlds and keep the old one in good memory.

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    Volunteering to look after people on the internet is always a tough assignment., and overall something that is thankless is not worth any portion of your mental or physical health. Godspeed in your next chapter of site interaction, however that manifests.
    – Skooba
    Commented Jul 31 at 18:48
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    Thank you for your long standing committment to the site over the last 12 or more years. We will certainly miss you on the moderation team. Best Wishes !
    – iandotkelly Mod
    Commented Jul 31 at 18:54
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    Cheers and farewell! Quick question—since we're in the midst of discussing the return of ID questions and you've been the primary moderator communicating with us, will someone else from the moderator team step up to lead this conversation going forward?
    – galacticninja
    Commented Aug 1 at 7:05
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    @galacticninja the rest of the moderation team is around. We are not necessarily here to only 'lead' the conversation, but will certainly take part and as the ones with necessary permissions make the appropriate changes to the Help Center etc as led by the decisions made.
    – iandotkelly Mod
    Commented Aug 3 at 13:51
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    Thanks for all your efforts and contributions, Napoleon! Sorry to see you go (as a moderator), but glad to read it's a well-considered decision!
    – Joachim
    Commented Aug 5 at 19:33
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    I haven't been around here that much either recently and never thought one day I would see a post like this coming from you. Watching you in your role was always such a pleasure, thinking of M&TV without you is unimaginable. Will miss your presence here. Best wishes for whatever you are after ;)
    – Spectra
    Commented Aug 13 at 14:42
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    oh no you will surely be missed! Thanks for all your contributions over the years!
    – Luciano
    Commented Aug 15 at 12:34

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Wow!

I'd picked up hints from private mod spaces that this was coming, but it's still a shock, and difficult to even think about M&TV without you as a moderator.

  • Your love for this site has always been very clear. Let's be honest, we've disagreed on many things over the years, and maybe I'm not the first person you'd have wished to answer this post, but something I've always respected about you is: you care deeply about this site and community, and you've always wanted what you think is best for it. That's why this is such a shock: I thought you'd keep on leading M&TV until the diamond was pried out of your (metaphorical) cold dead hands. But perhaps it'll be better to participate in a different role for some time - which leads me on to ...

  • I hope that your voice will still be heard, both on main and on meta. Through our disagreements about the type of Q&A that this site encourages, I've understood that your vision of the site (with insightful Q&A encouraging deep analysis of films and TV) is actually better than the average quality level of content here. Thus, I hope that being freed of mod responsibilities will enable you to contribute more Q&A and raise that average level through your own contributions. Obviously, your eloquent meta posts will also continue to be a boon to thoughtful discussions here.

  • Let's be clear that this is not a "rage-quit". I'm sure that some will try to spin the narrative in that way, but I know how much you've always been against rage-quitting. I do believe you'll never delete your account entirely, and there's no anger expressed in this meta post, even though I'm sure you personally disagree with a certain recent meta consensus. Stepping down is every moderator's good right, and you're not creating any chaos by doing so. (If this is even partly because of the decision to bring back ID, perhaps that's the most noble thing to do: let the community be led by those who agree with the community decision, rather than being forced to play a leadership role in a direction that you personally disagree with. Your plea to not allow this to create a rift in the community is balanced and appreciated.)

Some statistics to show how dedicated you've been to this site, in non-diamond-moderation-related activities:

My entire time on this site (since November 2015) has been with you moderating it. Things are going to change around here without that orange presence on the mod team.

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    "Wow!" - Ditto! Thank you for your kind words.
    – Napoleon Wilson
    Commented Aug 6 at 17:00

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