Not all comments are created equal: the case for ending online comments

Submitted by Mastodon on Tue, 2015-09-15 05:12

Article here. Excerpt:

'It shouldn’t be a surprise that I’m not fond of comments sections. I think you’d be hard-pressed to find many female writers who are. On most sites – from YouTube to local newspapers – comments are a place where the most noxious thoughts rise to the top and smart conversations are lost in a sea of garbage.

There’s a reason, after all, that the refrain “don’t read the comments” has become ubiquitous among journalists. But if we’re not to read them, why have them at all?

I wasn’t always a comments-hater. When I started a feminist blog in 2004, I was thrilled to finally be able to talk with other young feminists online and was open to chatting with detractors. I saw the comments section as a way to destabilize the traditional writer/reader relationship – no longer did audiences need to consume an article without a true opportunity to respond. Comments even made my writing better those days; feedback from readers broadened the way I thought and sometimes changed my mind.'

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http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/68019-let-me-never-fall-into-the-vulgar-mistake-of-dreaming

"Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted."

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Submitted by Matt on Tue, 2015-09-15 15:28

"almost-entirely male keyboard bashers" Really Jessica??

I just looked thorough her comment sections on this article and past articles. Almost all are gender ambiguous. Women spend more time on the computer for social and recreation purposes, so women are more likely to comment on things. She is just incorrectly assuming all her negative and immature comments are from men.

Both genders have immature idiots on the internet and both genders occasionally receive bile and threatening comments about their written articles especially if it is highly opinionated or controversial.

I notice that she says she used to like the comment section when she was communicating among other feminists. Yeah, we all like when we get patted on the back from our allies, but when you expose your writing to more diverse crowd, your are going to get more diverse opinions and feedback. That's life.

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Submitted by Kris on Wed, 2015-09-16 19:20