Anonymous Comments Are No Better than Spam
By Gina Cuclis
I don't allow anonymous comments on this blog. I delete them. I usually mark the e-mail and IP addresses of anonymous comments as spam, because that's what they are. If you have a business or professional blog you know what I mean. Individuals who provide relevant and helpful comments don't disguise who they are.
Cowards Don't Use Their Real Names
There's also another kind of anonymous commenter I dislike. People who hide behind fake names in order to be vitriolic, nasty, or lob personal attacks. These people don't identify themselves because they don't have the integrity to be held accountable for their behavior or their questionable facts. People who form opinions based on research or direct experience with an issue don't need to hide who they are.
Anonymous Commenters Degrade Discussion
I particularly notice these fake persona, negative commenters on political blogs where they become online bullies and ruin the discussion. An online bully rarely has anything factual or thoughtful to say. Blogs that allow anonymous bullies drive away participation by reasonable people. This hurts the blog's credibility. Blogs that refuse anonymous comments are more credible, because they have set a standard that commenters must be willing to stand behind what they say.
A North Bay based blog that I think has been ruined by the negative behavior of anonymous commenters is the Press Democrat's Watch Sonoma County. I looked at watchsonomacounty.com today for the first time in weeks. I used to read it regularly when it first launched last Spring. I occassionally posted a comment. But as the tone of the discussion went downhill, I stopped participating. Soon, I stopped reading.
Don't Allow Anonymous Comments
If you want the discussion on your blog to be interesting and civil, the solution is simple. The Sonoma Index Tribune realized this months ago when it stopped allowing anonymous comments.
What is your opinion about anonymous comments? Have you ever written one and why? (Don't try it here.)
I don't allow anonymous comments on this blog. I delete them. I usually mark the e-mail and IP addresses of anonymous comments as spam, because that's what they are. If you have a business or professional blog you know what I mean. Individuals who provide relevant and helpful comments don't disguise who they are.
Cowards Don't Use Their Real Names
There's also another kind of anonymous commenter I dislike. People who hide behind fake names in order to be vitriolic, nasty, or lob personal attacks. These people don't identify themselves because they don't have the integrity to be held accountable for their behavior or their questionable facts. People who form opinions based on research or direct experience with an issue don't need to hide who they are.
Anonymous Commenters Degrade Discussion
I particularly notice these fake persona, negative commenters on political blogs where they become online bullies and ruin the discussion. An online bully rarely has anything factual or thoughtful to say. Blogs that allow anonymous bullies drive away participation by reasonable people. This hurts the blog's credibility. Blogs that refuse anonymous comments are more credible, because they have set a standard that commenters must be willing to stand behind what they say.
A North Bay based blog that I think has been ruined by the negative behavior of anonymous commenters is the Press Democrat's Watch Sonoma County. I looked at watchsonomacounty.com today for the first time in weeks. I used to read it regularly when it first launched last Spring. I occassionally posted a comment. But as the tone of the discussion went downhill, I stopped participating. Soon, I stopped reading.
Don't Allow Anonymous Comments
If you want the discussion on your blog to be interesting and civil, the solution is simple. The Sonoma Index Tribune realized this months ago when it stopped allowing anonymous comments.
What is your opinion about anonymous comments? Have you ever written one and why? (Don't try it here.)
Posted by Gina Cuclis at 10/11/2010 4:55 PM 
Categories: Political Communications, Newspapers, Social Media
Tags: blog Sonoma County Press Democrat watchsonomacounty
Categories: Political Communications, Newspapers, Social Media
Tags: blog Sonoma County Press Democrat watchsonomacounty
I maintain anonymous accounts on two sites (likely not ones that you'd ever stumble across), mostly because I've used those identities to make some strong statements about charitable work I've done, and I want those statements to inspire, not grandstand.
And I allow, and even encourage, pseudonyms at Flutterby.com. Yeah, I've had my share of drive-by spammers, but many of the participants there have talked about work issues.
So I actually think the problem with newspaper comment sites isn't the anonymity, except where the anonymity convinces people that those identities don't have real value.
I think the problem with newspapers is that the participants are generally reacting to shallow stories, low on context to make sense of the shades of gray, and where "balance" often means "quote someone from each of the polar extremes".
Having said that, back in 2003 a friend played search engine games to make an entry on Flutterby.com the second hit on Google for "French Military Victories", and I was astounded at the puerile idiocy that that attracted. So it could just be that many of the web sites I frequent, and the ones I run, exist in a sheltered corner of the world that's largely peopled by folks who want to have intelligent nuanced conversations with each other. I remember back in the blog pioneer days taking Dave Winer to task over his complaints about the quality of his commenters, and then writing a long mea culpa shortly thereafter because one of my pieces got wider distribution and attracted the trolls and loons.
And most of the anonymous comments you're deleting are probably the current wave of search engine farmers hoping for a free link, typing in worthless but almost on-topic comments in the hopes that they won't get deleted.
But I think there's a lot that newspaper sites could do to attract better interactions with their readers. I think it largely depends on what sort of readers those newspaper sites are seeking to deliver to their advertisers.
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Yes, the comments I'm deleting are the "search engine farmers." When you compare the Index Tribune comments to the Press Democrat comments, you can tell there's a difference. I don't think the PD should allow anonymous comments.
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I touched on this topic myself in at least two major articles in recent months. Frankly, I am in agreement with you. Put your real name out there, or crawl back under your rock. As to the level of discussion on Watch Sonoma County, in my opinion, it is at the same level as the disusssions on Pet 360 Forums. Frankly, I hardly bother looking at them anymore.
Curious, is it not, that a newspaper requires you to provide your name, address and phone number if you submit an old fashiioned letter to the editor (by e-mail of course) but permits screen names on their web site?
Good thought provoking post! I will link to it in my next general e-mail.
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Excellent point you make about how newspapers require you to provide your name for a letter to an editor and in the case mentioned here they don't for the website. I linked this post to my Facebook profile and had several people express their agreement.
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