We received this message the other day from one of our readers:
“When I am unable to read your paper copy I like to visit your Website. Unfortunately, I am finding the comments posted by some of your users to be rather crude and speculative.
The reason I am writing is get an explanation as to why your paper/website allows users to comment. It is worth mentioning that when reading the letters to the editor, while I may not agree with the opinion, the letters have always been somewhat professional.
In general I (the reader) would prefer to only see your writers’ work (which undoubtedly requires many hours of research). I also can assure you that I am not the only one who feels this way, many of my friends and co-workers have made similar comments.
I ultimately wish you would just put an end to user comments and leave the writing to the professionals (your writers). Perhaps you could comment on this idea?
We would be happy to.
Our goal with reader comments is to harness the community’s knowledge and interact in ways that improve our journalism and readers’ understanding of the issues.
Occasionally, a post will illuminate another fact we should consider in our coverage of events. Many times readers with specialized knowledge point to a fact that makes our future coverage better.
Readers also provide another perspective. We try to get as much perspective as possible into all our stories, but, no matter how many viewpoints we report, there’s always someone who feels they haven’t been heard.
Finally, since we do believe in the First Amendment, we also want to provide a public forum for honest debate. We actually enjoy this form of interaction with our readers.
It is true that story comments occasionally devolve into an online brawl, especially with topics that have high emotional content. But this is generally the work of a handful of posters and doesn’t reflect the majority of our readers.
In the past, we have restrained this small group, but in our recent redesign we decided to back away from our role as moderators and let more posts appear without an editor’s review. It was our hope that the community would police itself.
We admit the results have been mixed so far. Few users are flagging offensive posts but more are complaining about abusive behaviors. And we are concerned that this mean-spirited minority is keeping other voices from joining the conversation.
As a result, we are discussing several possible changes, including:
- Right now, we post all comments below our stories. We could post only selected comments that we feel represent a range of perspectives without being nasty or mean-spirited. We would provide a simple link to “All comments” in a separate area.
- We could allow users to turn all comments off. You could decide, as the reader above, that reader comments are not useful. If you’d rather concentrate on what the Pilot’s writers produce, just select “Comments off.”
- Or we could allow people to “vote” on posts, with the most highly rated posts rising to the top of the comments list.
We expect that some readers might respond negatively. Some might suggest even less monitoring by our staff. Some might suggest they have a First Amendment right to say whatever they want and people who don’t like a little nastiness should stay off the boards.
We can’t agree with that approach. We think the boards should be friendly to everyone who wants to engage in a civil conversation.
That’s what we think. What do you think we could do to make this feature more valuable?
You can respond by posting a comment below or by sending an email to fred.schecker@pilotonline.com
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Voting
"Or we could allow people to “vote” on posts, with the most highly rated posts rising to the top of the comments list."
I don't think a group could vote on free speech. You could have groups that outnumber others simply vote their preferred speakers to the top. It's going to be an impossible task to make everyone happy about this issue.
Often the tone does get silly. The moderation at times seems to be unwarranted. On the flip side of moderating outlandish comments is that even some of the worst are actually a reflection of our society when one can remain anonymous. I do understand people making senseless attacks using crude language and such does have to be limited, but often the truth bleeds through in an unintended manner that cannot be retracted. In addition, highly emotional topics can be discussed by people without fear of someone shouting in their face. Examining a topic in print removes the stigna of group approval.
I think it's great. It also helps me to develop my voice in a non-fiction setting. I still think I should start my own blog a the Pilot. I am just thinking aloud.
Have a good weekend Fred.
Comment
I am not sure which story you were trying to comment on, but we do not enable comments for every posted story.
good work
good work
homerama story
I wanted to make a comment on that story but there is no link.....
You need to make the comments easier to post.
it's really fairly simple...
If you don't want to read comments, don't click on the link to read the comments. If you cannot help yourself and you are still complaining, find yourself a program for ridding yourself of unwanted behaviours. If you see something that is so blatently insulting or offensive, report it. The staff does a good job of taking care of reported posts.
Blog requests
Please send your proposal for a blog to Deborah Markham, our community producer. She can be reached at deborah.markham@pilotonline.com
Fresher Blogs
How are the blogs on the site selected? I was trying to look for up to date blogs about parenting and the one or two I found were months old. Can anyone write a blog? Is there a way to turn over blogs that aren't maintained?
There is SO MUCH going on in this community that it is a shame to let community news like this slip by.
Tanya
Well now
I think that the reader who has a problem with the reader comments should get a clue-or a life, it's their choice. Reader comments allow for reporters to get excellent feedback on their articles. Not only do reporters get informative feedback, other readers also benefit from a user's comments.
Yes, comments are sometimes written in bad taste. However, some articles published in the Virginian Pilot are also written in bad taste (Escort Service Teacher-destroying her life?)
Despite that, some commemts are informative for readers that may not be familiar with the content of the article. Some comments are humorous, and some comments may present new interpretations of the article in questions.
So in conclusion, commenting on articles should not be disabled
If you are interested in proposing a blog
Please contact our community producer Deborah Markham at deborah.markham@pilotonline.com
Creating a Blog...
How exactly does one create a new blog on this site?
Southron
Readers Comments
If you don't want to read the comments, then stop reading when the screen is gray directly under the article..lol
readers comments
I think the readers comments are a great way, in most instances, to get more information from a story and be presented with more points of view. This has certainly helped me in ways I never expected. I have learned more about certain topics, and have even changed my whole way of thinking on some topics. The comments, when well written, thought out, and factually backed-up, have been enlightening and enabled me to make a more informed decision about topics that mean something to me.
I must admit that sometimes I am totally amused by the "on-line brawls" that sometimes occur, and will keep checking them during the day just to get a chuckle at work.
Comment on Comments
I enjoy reading others comments. For those who don't, I think a way to cut off comments for their accounts would be a good way to prevent any who just don't want to read all opinions.
The other two ideas, the voting and the selection with a link to all comments are both viable ways to handle the situation.