I don't think I signed away my right to express humor or irony when I signed up with this outfit.
Not at all, but it would be helpful if you then went on to explain more seriously.
I'm not sure what you mean by "rhetoric" here
Rhetoric is something said more for effect than for its informational value - humour and irony are forms of rhetoric. (They can still have informational value, but it's generally of secondary importance to the effect of the statement.)
I suppose you want me to use smileys when I say something wry or smile in resigned bemusement. ;)
I've been online long enough that I can usually correctly interpret what people are saying. It also helps to English - we're generally much more used to sarcasm and similar forms of rhetoric than, say, Americans.
Anyone familiar with my career knows I've explained difficult and complex issues in the past, but I think a critical judge would be impatient with glib distinctions between categories of Wikinews. Make that doubly impatient if the judge is, say, French.
Thank you for the clarification, that's what I was after. A little explanation of *why* you think that would be nice, but I understand it may be difficult to explain properly without getting into more detail (particularly technical detail) than is appropriate for a general mailing list.