Reader comments.
Your two cents, please.
I hear from both sides, you love them or you hate them. And the subject of how newspapers moderate comments have come up often in the news — the recent temporary removal of comments from pressherald.com comes to mind.
As Web editor, part of my job is to make sure that discussion on SunJournal.com is an open forum for all members of the community. As we say on our commenting policy page, its a place for you to share your reactions, feelings and ideas about what's happening in our community. Part of the service the Sun Journal provides online is to connect you with the discussion around the news.
But sometimes, more often than we'd like, it's not friendly, honest discussion we have. Some people are mean. Some say things that I'd like to think they would never say in person. And plenty of people say things that would never pass our standards for letters printed in the paper, but are allowed online.
So below I have a little survey to ask you guys what you think. Take the survey, and leave your thoughts in the comments below.
— Pattie Reaves, Web Editor
Note: The link to the commenting policy in question 5 is broken -- here is the correct link: http://www.sunjournal.com/policy
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Patty: when the survey is
Patty: when the survey is complete what do you intend on doing with the results?
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Kudos AwardedDisagree (1)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Hey citygirl, We're looking
Hey citygirl,
We're looking at a couple different things to change the way that we handle comments, like making people use their first names, or instituting a two-strikes policy. Until recently I was reluctant to ban habitual offenders because its hard to keep them from reregistering with another pseudonym. But several people have made compelling arguments to me to revise that policy.
Anyway, the survey closes a week from Tuesday, and I'll make another post with the results. You can review them now at the link I posted above.
Thanks!
Pattie
(And as always, if anyone wants to send me private comments, my email is preaves@sunjournal.com)
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Patty, how will you verify
Patty, how will you verify that people have given their real names? Are you going to do a credit check on everybody? Or have them scan and post their driver's license?
Also, I don't use my real name because I have a family to protect, and there are some very disturbing people on here. The person that you reprimanded on my behalf a couple of days ago is an example. I wouldn't want to give him, and people like him any hint about who I am or how to find me.
People use screen names on millions of websites, I don't see why SJ should be any different.
As for the posters that continually complain and even degrade anonimous profiles, just what would change if they knew everybody's legal name? How would that help?, unless they get so angry that they want find them and confront them in person. I don't need that, and my wife and child sure don't need it.
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.I agree
There is no way to verify that someone is who they say they are. If you plan to look at email accounts to verify real names, my cat has a gmail account under his name; it's not hard for one person to create email accounts under several names. I believe that is being done here already.
I would never post using my full name, for the reasons f&h mentioned as well as for the fact that my opinions could reflect badly on my rather high profile spouse, who prefers to remain publicly apolitical due to his position.
At this point, though, there is so much rancorous back and forth, and such uncontrolled and overwhelmingly wordy postings by one person under several very transparent pseudonyms, that I'm ready to call it quits anyway.
I think that if real names are required you will find a steep drop in participants.
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Kudos AwardedAgree (4)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Patty
I submitted 2 reports to you 2 days ago that were posted by a person I have never seen on here before. He came out of nowhere and was very nasty. Calling me a liar, telling me to "shove it" etc.
The comments he made have not been removed and you have not responded to me by email.
If I was a left wing liberal or a Somalian you would have taken care of this right away.
So why is it ok for this troll to speak to me like that?
Is the commenting policy meant to be equally applied, or do you reserve the right to play favorites?
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Kudos AwardedDisagree (3)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Hey -- I responded to them,
Hey --
I responded to them, didn't I? I remember getting the second one, but not the first. And I took his comment down and sent him a warning. I get around 20-30 a day and I try to respond to every one that I can, but sometimes they get lost.
Anyway, if it wasn't addressed, it was an honest mistake.
Pattie
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Forgive me Pattie
You removed 2 of the 3 nasty posts while I was writing the above comment.
Forgive me, and thank you
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Kudos AwardedDisagree (2) Agree (1)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.The link didn't work.
The link didn't work.
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.It added the period at the
It added the period at the end of my sentence to the link. Grr! You can read the policy here:
http://www.sunjournal.com/policy
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Results
Show the readers the results of the survey.
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Kudos AwardedDisagree (1) Agree (1)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Will do -- I guess Twtpoll
Will do -- I guess Twtpoll doesn't make the results of a survey public by default, like it does from polls.
You can follow the answers as they come in here: http://twtpoll.com/r/7g6te9
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