As a moderator, you can change the moderation status of an idea, including removing the idea from the community.

If you're looking for information on how to move an idea, we have a help guide dedicated to guiding you through that process: Moving an idea. Or, if you're looking for information on idea status labels, check out our help guide on using status labels.

In this article:

Understanding the moderation statuses
Changing the moderation status of an idea

Understanding the moderation statuses

The moderation status of an idea affects whether users can see that idea and how they can interact with it.

There are 4 moderation statuses that an idea can have: Clear, Closed, Closed for comments and Removed. This table summarises the definition of each status, and there is further explanation below.

Status	Definition
Clear	There are no restrictions on the idea, none of the below statuses are in effect.
Closed	The idea is visible to users, but it's not possible to add a vote for or comment on the idea.
Closed comments	The idea is visible and users can vote on it, but it's not possible to add a comment to the idea.
Removed	The idea is removed from the challenge, it's no longer visible to users though moderators and administrators will still be able to see it.

Good to know

There is no option to delete an idea, only to remove it. Removing an idea completely hides it from users but allows admins and moderators to review and refer back to it whenever they need to.

If you change an idea status to Closed comments users will not be able to add any comments to the idea. The idea will still be visible to users, as will any comments that were added previously, but new comments can't be added.

If the moderation status of an idea is Closed, users are not able to comment or vote on the idea; existing votes and comments are still visible.

If you choose to Remove an idea users will not be able to see the idea, or any comments and votes that are attached to it. The idea is still visible to the moderators of the challenge in which it was posted, and to administrators.

If you are a moderator in a challenge, you can view all removed ideas in a challenge by sorting ideas by Removed on the challenge page.

Changing the moderation status of an idea

To change an idea's moderation status:

1. On the idea page, click Moderation Status.

2. Select the status that you'd like to apply to the idea.

3. OPTIONAL: You can add a message when you change the moderation status, this will be shown as a comment on the idea.

4. Click Save to save the change in status.

If you Remove an idea, the idea and comments are not visible to the idea author (unless they're a moderator!) so they won't be able to see any reason that you add to explain the change in status. It's good practice to contact the user directly to let them know why you've removed their idea, or they might wonder why it's disappeared!