To be fair many people say exactly what you wrote about this solution, Discourse. So “in the eye of the beholder” and all that.
I tend to judge based on the results. How embarrassed would you be to be associated with the content in those discussions? That’s the golden rule in my book. Don’t allow people to build web pages that make you ashamed to be associated with them.
So you claim…
*Narrows eyes and strokes beard meaningfully.*
I have no comment about the content of Gizmodo threads because they’re presented in such a way that puts me off ever even trying to looking at them (again, see also the BBC, with their stupid tiny amount of visible comments).
But I imagine the content is awful, just like it is on The Verge, because that’s what tech website comments are always like. I’ve really swung round to being in favour of brutally ruthless moderation.
Getting away from moderation, I have no idea why anyone who has comments on their site doesn’t default to all comments, replies shown, oldest first. How else could you follow a conversation? And if there isn’t a conversation, what’s the point?
Honestly, I used to spend a fair bit of time on Consumerist, but the vitriol and absolute lack of any kind of decent moderation made me leave and never come back. It was especially heinous because the site used to directly solicit comments in the main entries, so it wasn’t some afterthought. I don’t know what became of the website. I haven’t been back in years. I do know that the ranks of the commenters had swelled with people who did nothing all day but criticize the consumer… on a consumer advocacy website. I don’t believe that all debate should be stifled, but when the trolls run a kingdom largely inhabited by them, it’s hardly worth fighting over.
It’s not as bad as making Anonymous moderators.
Good observation. We try to avoid that conflict of interest where I moderate. Any moderators participating in a topic usually recuse themselves from moderating. Unfortunately, the moderated often view that as bullying (instead of one moderator “abusing” me now there are two). Which makes a good argument for having a dragon moderate.
Well it is funny you should mention that particular site because guess who just signed a contract with Discourse to revive their community… perhaps you could pop in there once it’s up and advise? (They have no community / comments at the moment, maybe because of the problem you are describing?)
Anyways, as I alluded to above, to me Discourse is about creating viable communities that don’t tear themselves apart, communities that you’d be comfortable being associated with, dare I say … proud of? … not merely selling software and hosting.
Fascinating. I may have to pop in then. I will say this about any website, and I say this all the time to people who shill SEO: Content is the primary mode of investment and community is the primary form of return. I like BoingBoing, but I don’t stick around to just to read the articlettes, which necessarily outnumber the features. I visit the site much more often because I want to see what other Happy Mutants are up to.
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