The Four Word Comment Policy
The Four Word Comment Policy
1. Identify yourself.
2. Contribute mindfully.
This month I researched commenting policies. Thanks to Waylon, I discovered Tree Hugger's submit button asks you to play nice. I read up on disemvowelment. I spoke my thoughts on the need for comments to be moderated (eliminated) on obituaries and tragedy stories.
This research (and self-search) led me to two simple guidelines.
Identify yourself The first, I've realized, is vital to keeping the peace of a place online. With an identity tag, we're more likely to keep it kind. If there's no kindness to ourselves and others, there's less of an atmosphere of growth. The point of the work I'm doing in the world is to cultivate kindness to myself and others (one of my personal commandments is "extend kindness in all directions").
Contribute mindfully When you have something to share in the comments, be mindful about it. If you want to comment on something that doesn't respond to the post at hand, use the contact forms on the site to do so - directly with the author. This allows for the dialog to continue in a way that is productive.
This may not cover every eventuality, but I believe it is the heart of what a community needs to grow: awareness of self, awareness of others.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Reader Comments (2)
From the tweet, I thought your conclusion was going to be that comments should only be four words long. That's why people are so mean on twitter, you know. Because they're allowed too many words. ;)
As usual, your actual conclusion is so much more wisely considered and useful than I could have guessed.
Keep continuing to impress me.
Oh, and I couldn't be more in agreement on the tragedy stories thing. The best comment is none. True condolences can be extended just as well in silence. Nothing else needs to be said.
(Incidentally, have you ever noticed that 80% of the stories on the Denver Post site attempt to twist the story in the direction of immigration? It's baffling, maddening, and the main reason I never visit their site.)
I think these guidelines are terrific. I would also, however, draw your attention to a different kind of web community that functions precisely because it is 100% anonymous. Click on over to youbemom.com and watch the conversations fly. Super-simple interface, no names anywhere. But when I have a childcare question (or a cooking question, or a marriage question, or a TV question, or a sex question...) I can go there, throw it out, and get a bunch of answers right away. The trustworthiness of those answers has to be taken with a grain of salt, to be sure, but for an anonymous community, it can be remarkably supportive. A real culture has taken root there over the years, and when someone is acting up, the community pretty effectively shuts it down. Have a look and see what you think.