When visitors are allowed to comment, they are also inevitably able to create situations, that may require moderation. The list below itemizes some of the most common problems, that go hand in hand with having a commenting section for blog posts and should be considered beforehand.
- Being shown wrong
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When being shown wrong, the intellectually honest thing to do is to correct the mistake, raising the question of how to do this in a sensible way without disrupting discussions.
- Trolls, hate preachers, know-it-alls
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Any kind of open forum always attracts less pleasant debaters sooner or later, raising the question of how to weight free speech against keeping discussions civil. Keep in mind, that anonymity is seen by many people as an opportunity to throw with dirt for fun and pleasure.
- Deletion Request
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Occasionally, people will write things, they either regret later on or deem to be a future career hazard. People may also find, personal details to be revealed about them by other people, that are not meant to be released into the general public. This raises several questions, like who is eligible to have a comment removed? What method can be used to establish that the requesting party indeed is who she claims to be? How can a comment technically be removed (or edited) without disrupting a discussion?
- Illegal content in comments
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What can/must be done when comments are posted, promoting criminal actions? Can they simply be deleted? Must authorities be informed?
- Holiday replacement
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What can be done to prevent harm when a timely response to an ill guided comment is not possible? Can someone else fill in? Should comments simply be disabled in times of absence? Should all new comments be placed in a moderation queue until return?
When enabling comments for blog posts, it is advisable to state the terms and conditions for commenting on a separate page and link it from a prominent place (e.g. the footer).