Day 108: New X Account. Blocked Again. That Makes Three.
Well, that didn't take long. 😂
One important correction to my previous version of this story.
I created another X account.
Nirav had already blocked my original account, so I created a new one and kept doing what I've been doing: posting about my experience with Nextdoor and sharing feedback.
Could creating another account to get around a block violate X's Terms and Conditions?
Possibly.
I'm not going to pretend otherwise. It's a risk I'm taking, and if X decides I've violated its rules, I'll deal with the consequences.
But here's what happened next.
Within about 24 hours:
The new account was blocked too.
Based on my records, that's now three blocks, with two different accounts blocked within roughly 24 hours.
At this point, I feel like I'm participating in the world's strangest game of digital Whac-A-Mole.
Who Is Actually Pressing the Button?
Here's something I’m not sure about.
I’m not sure whether Nirav blocked me personally.
The screenshot tells me his account blocked mine. It doesn't tell me who was operating his account when it happened.
Maybe it's Nirav.
An executive assistant can help manage the account.
Maybe someone else has access.
I don't know.
And that's an important distinction because I'm trying to document what actually happened, not fill the gaps with assumptions.
What I do know is that @niravtolia blocked another account I used to provide feedback about Nextdoor.
Again.
Somebody Is Paying Attention
That's the part I find fascinating.
For over 100 days, I’ve been requesting detailed Nextdoor Insights research that the company advertised as available by contacting its Insights representative.
Getting the research has proven remarkably difficult.
Getting blocked?
Apparently we're pretty efficient at that. 😂
Whether Nirav himself is seeing my posts or someone else managing his account, somebody is noticing.
And if company resources are involved—and, again, I don't know that they are—I'd rather see those resources directed toward something that helps Nextdoor.
Find another advertiser.
Improve the small-business experience.
Improve moderation.
Answer customers.
Answer shareholders.
Develop another revenue opportunity.
Build something that increases engagement.
Create company value.
As a shareholder, that's considerably more interesting to me than another block.
Yes, I Created Another Account
I'm not going to bury that detail.
I created another X account after being blocked.
People can decide for themselves whether they think I should have done that.
X can decide whether it complies with its rules.
I'm comfortable owning the decision.
What I'm not doing is pretending to be someone else, inventing allegations, or hiding what I'm doing.
I'm putting my name on my commentary.
I'm taking screenshots.
I'm documenting dates.
And I'm publishing the history as I experience it.
If I'm wrong about something, please tell me.
I've made public corrections before.
Blocking Doesn't Stop the Historical Record
Here's the bigger issue.
Blocking an account doesn't erase the underlying questions.
It doesn't delete the emails I've sent.
It doesn't eliminate the screenshots.
It doesn't make 108 days disappear.
And it doesn't prevent me from writing about the experience elsewhere.
Nirav has a substantially larger social-media audience than I do.
That's fine.
I don't need a bigger audience to maintain a record.
Please provide screenshots, dates, emails, public statements, and the patience to keep everything organized.
I've got those.
Compare That With Sarah Leary
I've also been providing feedback about Nextdoor co-founder Sarah Leary.
I've noticed that the @sarahleary account I've been following stopped posting, while she's been posting through another account.
I don't know why she changed where she posts.
I have no evidence whatsoever that my commentary had anything to do with it.
But from my perspective, it looks different.
Don't want to engage with me?
Fine.
Ignore me.
Post somewhere else.
Don't respond.
Disagree.
There are plenty of options.
That looks better than repeatedly blocking accounts belonging to someone who is publicly documenting a company in which he owns shares.
And We Just Published a Study About Trust
The timing continues to amuse me.
I just wrote about Nextdoor's new study with The Harris Poll examining trust.
And I praised it.
Imagine that.
After months of providing feedback about Nextdoor research, I saw something I thought the company did well and said:
Bravo.
Then I connected the study's discussion of trust and communication with my experience dealing with Nextdoor.
And now another account is blocked.
It looks like you couldn't write this script.
Feedback Isn't Always Comfortable
I've spent more than 20 years in Learning & Development.
Feedback isn't always pleasant.
Sometimes it's wrong.
Sometimes it's poorly delivered.
Sometimes it's repetitive.
Sometimes the person receiving it wants nothing more than for the person providing it to disappear.
But feedback can also expose something worth examining.
A leader doesn't have to agree with it.
A company doesn't have to implement it.
A CEO doesn’t need to debate every shareholder on social media personally.
But I still think there is value in an organization asking:
Why does this person keep raising the same issue?
Maybe he's wrong.
Maybe the company is wrong.
Maybe both sides are missing something.
There's a remarkably effective way to find out.
Have a conversation.
So, Yes, Nirav—You Got Me Again
Third block.
Two accounts within roughly 24 hours.
And yes, one of those accounts was created after the previous one was blocked.
I'm not hiding that.
Maybe X eventually tells me I can't do that.
That's a chance I'm taking.
But this case study doesn't live on X.
It lives on my website.
The emails still exist.
The screenshots still exist.
And the questions still exist.
And I'm still documenting what happens.
Day 108.
Another account blocked.
The questions?
Still here.
👉 NielFlamm.com/blog