Zombie Journalism

A Massachusetts newspaper is banning anonymous comments by charging for the privilege. This seems like overkill – and it can eliminate important discussion.

If news websites were to get rid of anonymous comments, we may be eliminating the opinions of some very valuable (and young) readers.

For better or worse, the people who comment on news websites do represent part of the readership we claim to serve. So should we as a news organization and conversation hub be trying to suppress their opinions?

We as an industry like to collectively wring our hands about the toxicity of online comment boards, but if we really want to improve the quality of on-site discussion we need to be willing to get involved in our sites in a hands-on manner. No amount of filters, comment-detecting robots and user-end moderation will replace the presence of a dutiful moderator.

Here’s a collection of great tips and how-tos I’ve found lately you might find helpful if you want to break into media – or break out. Includes tips on YouTube, data mapping, UGC, training and starting your own blog.

Online comments are a gigantic albatross for newspaper sites, but I believe we need them. Instead of panicking, we need to ride out these early days of commenting and learn to become better community managers.