Backchannel is the term used to describe the correspondence between two members
of a newsgroup, when the correspondence is
conducted in private (off the newsgroup). While members often use this as a way
to comment to each other in private, newsgroup moderators may also backchannel
members to tell the poster their comments or post is inappropriate. By using
backchanneling, the number of unrelated messages posted to the
newsgroup is limited.
