I gotta say-- I wouldn't want to be mentioned for simply viewing an interest check either. Not at all.

I think it's a bad habit. Also a bad way to gauge how successful your interest check is, as I know some GMs say stuff like "If 3 more people say they're interested, I'll start working on the OOC!" Of course, there's nothing wrong with that, but you should never count lurkers towards that number. That's like counting people who walk by your food truck and stop long enough to read the menu as customers. Unless they actually buy something-- [i]don't count them.[/i] And definitely don't sign them up for your weekly newsletter just because you happen to have the ability to know everyone's email address.

There are a number of reasons why someone might decide to lurk without saying anything-- but I think the main reason is probably that they're either not interested or unsure of whether or not they're interested. If they are, they have all the means available to let it be known and keep track of what's going on. The thread isn't going anywhere. The subscription button is always an option. You might have to go to page two of the Interest Check section if you forgot to subscribe, but that's not a big deal at all. Probably easier than the GM sitting on their toppic and jotting down the name of every person that peeks their head in the window.

I would much rather gauge how passionate a GM is about their RP by observing the effort they put into the story itself than mentioning people who could possibly be uninterested. That just wreaks of desperation to me. Have faith in your story and GMing ability. If both are super great, you shouldn't be having to sneak in the extra numbers so people think your RP is more popular than it is. Overall, it just comes across as a bit scummy-- but maybe that's just me.