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Since, according to k00b, Stacker News is still in beta, it doesn't much matter how effective a 10k downzap is. We're trying to work out the mechanics of the site and establish proof of concept.
If Stacker News becomes larger, suppressing good content will become more costly. If this still seems like a problem, maybe we'd experiment with zaprank models that also account for how many zappers there are on each side and how trusted they are by the community. We could also experiment with personalized feeds some more.
Ultimately, downzapping does useful stuff and is an obvious part of using money as the moderator.
If there are no downzaps, wouldn't we be at the mercy of people who want to pay to have their content show up on the front page?
You already are at the mercy of posters who use Sly Sybil zaps to boost their content.
Such posters dominate the front page and have done for a long time.
Do you have a solution for the Sly Sybil boosters who have long dominated content?
Also, posters who are prepared to spend sats to raise issues they think are important are one of the ways in which SNs might one day become a viable economic proposition capable of sustained earnings - however if pay to post posters are hit by anonymous, repeated and determined downzapping censorship they likely will stop spending sats to boost content.
But Sybil zappers are not easily identified- they conceal their self boosting and thus downzapping is unlikely to solve this problem.
Likewise with downzappers able to hide their nym they can defeat the intent to pay to boost content providers who openly boost their content.
Under the current system both sybil boosters and anonymous downzappers are advantaged while those openly boosting content are punished.
The current setting reward sly anon downzapping and sybil boosting and punish open, honest boosting.
Downzapping has been tackled a few times (though not necessarily resolved) -- #1480924, #621288.
There was a recent case that made me think about it again and it is true that downzaps can hide content, which seems bad.
I see them playing a role (as you point out) in burrying the annoying bot-slop that seems to be trickling in on every post now days.
I also see a role for downzaps when it comes to counteracting self-zapping (boosts). If there are no downzaps, wouldn't we be at the mercy of people who want to pay to have their content show up on the front page?