Comments on: It Would Be Fun to Run a Newspaper

By: Ed Kohler

Ed Kohler — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 06:45:40 +0000

James, one way that I think comments could be cleaned up is through a voting system that helps the most thoughtful comments float to the top. This has been attempted at some sites, but I haven’t seen it done well yet. Assuming it could be done, perhaps comments would improve since thoughtful readers’ comments would receive more visibility rather than being stuck behind fast-commenting racists?

And, if the racist comments were essentially buried, perhaps those commenters would also get the hint?

One system I’ve heard of that can help is a 2-vote system where you rate a comment on a 1-5 scale for quality and also on whether you agree/disagree with the comment. This is similar to what Amazon has done, where people are most interested in reading quality positive and negative reviews.

By: James

James — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 23:17:07 +0000

Thanks for that input Robin, and Claire too. Yes I’ve seen the 9News site and my feelings on it are the same.

If the contributors on the local news boards were as well spoken and considerate as my readers I wouldn’t even be thinking about this.

By: Robin DeGrassi

Robin DeGrassi — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 19:17:21 +0000

James, I have had the same concerns about comments on news sites. I visit the 9News website every day – they recently revamped the site and now allow comments on their news stories. I do think that people should be allowed to express their opinion, and I enjoy reading what other people have to say; however, more often than not I find myself cringing at the rude, off-topic, or insulting comments that people post. Here in public radio land, we have discussed the possibility of opening up our site to comments. I have looked closely at how National Public Radio handles this issue. They do reserve the right to screen and edit comments, and they seem to use a light touch. I think it works very well for them, and it makes me actually want to scroll down far enough to read the comments. It is a sensitive issue though – no easy solutions!

Anyway, what I really want to say is that I HATE SUVs, politicians, the war, and cilantro – and anyone who thinks otherwise is an idiot. ;-)

-Robin

By: James

James — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 16:08:42 +0000

Hi Vikki – thank you VERY much for that response.

If you check the article I referenced yesterday you’ll see what looks like about 40-60 comments now. Out of all those, the most logical comment I see comes from JB who writes:

How does a story about some idiot contractor paiting double white lines on the side of the road turn into a rant about bike rights, Obama, McCain, Bush, terrorism, the war in Iraq or space aliens coming to get us?? Did I misread the article? Sheesh…

My thoughts exactly :) My wish isn’t to cease reader input, but when discussions deteriorate so far off topic they reach the ridiculous there’s nothing wrong with steering them back on course.

Its easy to jump on your keyboard and mash out a quick insult. (I’ve done it.) But it takes time and thought to construct an intelligent response that supports or dissuades the opinion of the article or a fellow poster. (I try to do that more.)

I think comment moderation should go above and beyond copyright and profanity issues. Almost all blogs and online forums have some sort of moderation. This isn’t to stymie opinions, but rather to keep the discussions relevant while weeding out off-topic trolls and attacks.

Moderating comments isn’t censorship or bias. Sometimes comment discussions take a healthy flow from one topic to the next, but when a thread is populated by people calling each other douche bags, retards, and idiots – then it subtracts from the REAL issue and discussion. And even though the newspaper boards do have filters to prevent foul language I still read rants against ethnic groups, (ok Mexicans,) – that have nothing to do with the original news stories. That kinda bugs me.

Even if the papers won’t selectively post comments, (like I suggested,) perhaps the web content managers could monitor the comments closer? I see nothing wrong with deleting comments containing the above examples in order to keep the discussion civil.

As mentioned I read both papers daily and appreciate the work of our local writers, and Vikki’s work too. I’m a proud resident of our city and state, and no matter what our political and social differences I want our voices to reflect the best of our citizens.

Thanks again for your note and for taking the time to respond – I really do appreciate it.

james…

p.s. I’m kind of a newspaper insider too. I used to deliver the “Grand Rapids Press” every afternoon as a kid.

And speaking of off-topic comments: Why on earth does the Denver Daily News exist?

By: Vikki Migoya

Vikki Migoya — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 14:36:39 +0000

Hi James. I’m breaking news editor at The Denver Post. I will address some of your concerns.

First, the papers are not owned by the same company. The Denver Post is owned by Media News Group, and the Rocky Mountain News is owned by Scripps. The Denver Newspaper Agency handles circulation and ad sales for both newspapers.

Second, Your Hub is a Scripps concept and is under the DNA. The Post is not involved in its online or print production, although print copies are distributed with The Post through our agreement with the DNA. The Post website does link to Your Hub, just as we link to DNA classified ads.

The Post product online that allows readers to post content is Neighbors (http://neighbors.denverpost.com/)

You are right that we do not screen comments that online readers post to our stories. We respond to requests to remove comments that violate our terms and conditions of use, including profanity and copyright infringement.

We want to be an open forum for ideas, whether or not we or our readers agree with the content of those ideas.

Some online news sites allow no comments, others screen comments before posting them. We have chosen to be as open to readers as possible.

I appreciate your thoughtful analysis of what we do. It’s encouraging in this unsettling media market to see an appetite for local news.

Feel free to contact me directly if you’d like to talk further.

By: Claire Walter

Claire Walter — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 02:49:47 +0000

Re “…am I stretching to think that this piece is just trolling for agitated readers and huffy comments?” I don’t think the media have to troll for people to leave snarky, critical, negative or, unfortunately, even hateful comments about just about every subject. Some people do it without being sought out.

For my part, I’d rather scroll past the drivel than have someone censor what appears on-line. Comments give a picture of what people think and are willing to write — even if we don’t care for their thoughts or words. Who said something like, “I may disagree with what you say, but I will defend your right to say it”?