Announcement & read-only groups
Run a group where only you (and admins) can post — perfect for broadcasts, cohorts, and announcements — by setting roles and per-person posting permission.
Advanced Sometimes you want a group everyone reads but only you post to — a challenge channel, a cohort announcement feed, a “house rules” board. That’s a read-only (announcement) group, and it’s built from two simple ideas: roles and posting permission.
Roles
Everyone in a conversation has a role:
| Role | Who | Can post? | Can manage the group? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner | The person who created it | Always | Yes |
| Admin | Promoted by the owner | Always | Yes |
| Member | Everyone else | Depends on permission ↓ | No |
Owners and admins can always post — being read-only never locks you out of your own announcement channel.
Posting permission (can post)
Independently of role, each member has a can-post switch:
- On (the default) — an ordinary two-way conversation; everyone chats.
- Off — that member can read but not send. Turn it off for all members and you’ve got a one-to-many announcement channel.
Setting it up
Make a whole group announcement-only when you create it — turn on the announcement / read-only option so new members join as read-only.
Change one person at any time from their entry in the conversation’s member list: flip their can-post switch, or use the make-admin control to promote them to admin so they can post and help manage (click it again to remove admin). The list shows each person’s role at a glance — an Owner tag on the creator and an Admin tag on admins. Changes apply immediately.
What a read-only member sees
Instead of a composer, a read-only member sees a quiet notice — “Only admins can post in this announcement group.” They can still read every message and tap the links, forms, and media you send. They simply can’t send messages into the channel.
Owners and admins are never blocked. Read-only only affects members — you can always post to a group you own, and so can anyone you’ve made an admin.
Next: make sure people see what you send — Notifications →