An open letter to digg.

Let me share with you a recent e-mail I sent to digg's abuse deparment.

"To my dismay, I've found that my account is no longer valid on digg.

http://digg.com/users/ekkalvia

I'm a loyal digg user, and also a founding member of productwiki.com. I do submit stories from our own website, but I am also on the lookout for other stories and have submitted non-productwiki links (with success) to digg on multiple occasions.

My submission that got me banned was a story that I submitted from ProductWiki that was written by one of our community members:

http://digg.com/television/G_I_Joe_the_original_war_on_terror

I have no idea why digg feels they have grounds to ban my account. This particular story was well-written, appeals to many of the digg demographic, contained no ads, was dugg by several prominent members of your own community, and I didn't employ any gaming techniques in getting this story promoted. I am baffled as to why digg has taken such drastic measures.

I feel digg lacks transparency, and this is one of the reasons that you have been under such scrutiny for being rigged and/or broken. I understand that this is a private site, and you have the right to accept or reject anyone you choose, and I respect that.

I have written an article in the past, that I think no longer applies:

http://www.productwiki.com/digg_com/article/why_digg_still_rocks_small_is_big.html

I would like for my account to be reinstated, but it is likely that the damage is already been done, and I have come to terms with that reality.

I guess I am left with a fundamental question. I am an honest, thoughtful, and prominent member of the Internet community, and if I am not welcome on digg, who is?

Erik Kalviainen
Co-founder, ProductWiki"

I don't expect a response, but I was left feeling helpless and frustrated, and this e-mail helped bring catharsis.

UPDATE:
After a further email exchange, my digg account has been unbanned.