A Penny for your Comments

News organizations are exploring a variety of ways to handle user comments. The Poynter Institute recently offered examples of approaches taken by US media. Among major newspaper sites:

* The Wall Street Journal does not allow discussion on all stories, having found that many financial discussion boards have turned into attempts at stock price manipulation. The Journal does allow comments in blogs and in forums but handles them differently. On the blogs, readers are free to comment however they like, without registration and without having to subscribe to the rest of the site. Forums are generally attached to media-generated questions or columns; users must register to add comments, which managing editor Bill Grueskin says ‘has a way of leading sometimes, but not always, to more thoughtful discussion.’ WSJ journalists do not edit for spelling or grammar, but do troll both blog posts and forums for ‘the nasty stuff’ such as profanity and ad hominem attacks.

* The New York Times publishes reader comments alongside blog posts, articles and reviews; it sees them as a way to draw on what community editor Heather Moore calls ‘our greatest strength,’ a readership that is ‘well-informed, passionate and more often than not highly articulate.’ The Times does not edit comments but does pre-screen in an effort to weed out ‘the tenacious few who would try to derail the conversation.’

* The Washington Post sees commenting as ‘an essential part of where online journalism is headed’ and a device to build both loyalty and community, according to online editor Jim Brady. The Post ‘post-moderates’: Other than profanity, which is filtered by a software program, any issues are dealt with after publication, typically as flagged by other users. Editors do keep a close eye on stories on the site’s home page.

More details, as well as information related to two non-newspaper sites, are available at: http://www.poynter.org/content/content_view.asp?id=123155