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News Sites Rethink Anonymous Online Comments

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by YankeeFan, Apr 11, 2010.

  1. Idaho

    Idaho Active Member

    Charge them $.01 for every comment. :D
     
  2. Ace

    Ace Well-Known Member

    Or ... comments are free. Racist comments, profanity and unprovoked personal attacks are a dime apiece.

    We'll be billionaires.
     
  3. YankeeFan

    YankeeFan Well-Known Member

    So, I can't be the only one who's thought of this. Has anyone tried it?

    Is it working and/or did it work?


    That's pretty funny.
     
  4. D-3 Fan

    D-3 Fan Well-Known Member

    I see your $.01 and raise you $.05...for every word they type.
     
  5. lantaur

    lantaur Well-Known Member

    So you want to exclude anyone who doesn't have a credit card from posting? Such as much of the younger generation, which is the future (if not present) audience?

    Yes, there are comments which can be bad (to put it mildly), but that is seriously the loud minority. There are plenty of good discussions which go on with comments.

    And why anonymous? Maybe for similar reasons reporters sometimes have to use anonymous sources.

    I can't believe every site doesn't have some sort of registration already ... I know newspaper sites can be behind the times, but that's rididculous [in response to Deseret News' policy.]
     
  6. YankeeFan

    YankeeFan Well-Known Member

    I read somewhere that young people are less concerned with anonymity. They put their whole lives out there on Facebook & Twitter, so they don't care about it.

    And most young people are going to have a credit or debit card.

    When a paper uses an anonymous source, it's up to the reporter (and the editor) to verify the information, asses the source's credibility & motives, and determine that anonymity (and the information provided) is worthy.

    It should be rare.

    To let any yahoo post anonymously on your website is insane.

    You wouldn't do it in print. Why would you do it on the web.

    Maybe a credit card isn't the answer, but with the lack of time & recourses to do it any other way, it would be the cheapest, quickest, and most effective manner.
     
  7. Fredrick

    Fredrick Well-Known Member

    Discussions regarding maliious, racist reader comments at our shop at least have given our employees in sports a great laugh. We've been basically told that any and all comments will remain untouched. They are valued greatly we are told.
    And editors who "monitor" the comments section regularly agree with the anonymous commentors who criticize the reporter. It's funny to see how these 10 a.m. meeting people throw the "workhorses" under the bus in the comments section. These editors hold discussions with the angry anonymous readers and basically agree that their own reporters are crap.
    What a world we live in.
     
  8. TheSportsPredictor

    TheSportsPredictor Well-Known Member

    If only the U.S. could become more like China:

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/7681709/China-to-force-internet-users-to-register-real-names.html

     
  9. J-School Blue

    J-School Blue Member

    Because choosing to exercise basic editorial control on a professional journalism Web site run by an organization that's supposedly concerned about things like libel, accuracy and accountability - and run by a private company that can do whatever the hell it wants with its content - would be exactly the same as the government pounding its fist down on random message boards.
     
  10. leo1

    leo1 Active Member

    there are at least a dozen different ways to pay on line without a credit card. paypal comes to mind.
     
  11. RickStain

    RickStain Well-Known Member

    None of them are cost effective for small amounts.
     
  12. YankeeFan

    YankeeFan Well-Known Member

    The idea of requiring a credit card isn't to actually make them pay to post -- though you would probably charge a nominal fee to register -- but rather to verify the person's identity.

    Letters to the editor are supposed to be verified before they are published.

    So should comments on the website.
     
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