The Crazy World of Craigslist

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. Craig Newmark founded Craigslist, the main site of which can be found at craigslist.org, in 1995, as an egalitarian project to connect local people with events they might find interesting. Appropriately enough for such an endeavor, where did Craigslist start? San Francisco, CA Chicago, IL Los Angeles, CA Portland, OR

2. From the beginning, Craigslist has been about "community moderation." Which of the following is NOT one of CL's community moderation strategies? Any community can set up a discussion forum for their issue If a user doesn't like an ad, he can "flag" it, and if an ad gets enough flags, it's removed If a user sees a bad ad, he can post in the classifieds warning others about the ad Spammers, scammers, etc. can be reported to the Craigslist abuse department

3. In 2000, Craigslist began to grow by adding its first site for a city other than its "home base." What city was that? Washington DC New York Boston Seattle

4. All ads on Craigslist are free to post. True False

5. Craigslist manages the nonprofit Craigslist Foundation. What types of projects does this foundation produce? Projects to build low-cost housing Projects to train Democratic activists Projects to provide technology to schools Projects to help nonprofit agencies

6. What other major website owns 25% of the equity in Craigslist? Amazon.com MSN Yahoo eBay

7. Perhaps the most controversial issue on Craigslist involves ads for the sale of something that is specifically prohibited in the TOU of the site. Disputes over this issue have led to flagging groups that exist specifically to flag ads for these items- and to antiflagger groups whose main action is to disrupt the flagging forums by flooding them and to pester Craig to ban the accounts of the flaggers. This dispute even has its own name among the Craigslist forum regulars. What are all of these people arguing about? The sale of people (prostitution) The sale of guns The sale of pets The sale of drugs

8. Craig Newmark has been on both sides of the legal arena, suing and being sued. Whom did he sue in 2002, and why? The State of Alaska, for killing wolves and thus impacting his enjoyment of tourism Turner Broadcasting, for opposing the use of commercial-skipping VCRs Microsoft, for allegedly pirating the Craigslist software His hairdresser, for injuring him and causing loss of hair growth

9. On the other side of the arena, who sued Craigslist in 2006, and why? The Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, for violation of the Fair Housing Act Microsoft, for alleged software copyright violations COYOTE, a prostitute advocacy group, for CL's ban on prostitution ads Yahoo.com, for unfair business competition

10. Not everyone loves Craigslist. The San Francisco Bay Guardian published an editorial in 2006 that likened Craigslist to what often-maligned company? Enron Microsoft Wal-Mart McDonalds