Dealing with Comments on your Website

We utilize our customer code of conduct ( http://www.columbuslibrary.org/ebranch/index.cfm?pageid=88) to provide us with similar guidelines for acceptable behavior. Though all may not apply to the virtual library setting, many of them do (such as using “profane, obscene or abusive language” and “Harassing other customers” in our digital space. We’ve haven’t really experienced many problems with comments in this area. In fact, we’ve only had to refer to the CCC once when we removed a comment because it verbally attack another customer using profanity.

Glad to hear your generating lots of feedback and conversation. Would you want it any other way? I’m guessing not.

We utilize our customer code of conduct ( http://www.columbuslibrary.org/ebranch/index.cfm?pageid=88) to provide us with similar guidelines for acceptable behavior. Though all may not apply to the virtual library setting, many of them do (such as using “profane, obscene or abusive language” and “Harassing other customers” in our digital space. We’ve haven’t really experienced many problems with comments in this area. In fact, we’ve only had to refer to the CCC once when we removed a comment because it verbally attack another customer using profanity.

Glad to hear your generating lots of feedback and conversation. Would you want it any other way? I’m guessing not.

Helene – cool! We have a similar Customer Conduct Policy.

I’ve been thinking we need something that spells out online behavior a bit more clearly – something like NPR’s Community Discussion Rules that addresses the what’s and how’s of public discussion on their site.

Helene – cool! We have a similar Customer Conduct Policy.

I’ve been thinking we need something that spells out online behavior a bit more clearly – something like NPR’s Community Discussion Rules that addresses the what’s and how’s of public discussion on their site.

it seems like a lot of work to manage comments, so the only thing I might do differently is set a time limit for when the ability to post comments will close. it would seem like after two weeks, you’ve answered pretty much everything, and I wouldn’t want to keep revisiting the same issues over and over for several months.

it seems like a lot of work to manage comments, so the only thing I might do differently is set a time limit for when the ability to post comments will close. it would seem like after two weeks, you’ve answered pretty much everything, and I wouldn’t want to keep revisiting the same issues over and over for several months.

Good idea, Tom! This is really the first “busy” comment we’ve had. If it continues, we might very well do what you suggest.

Good idea, Tom! This is really the first “busy” comment we’ve had. If it continues, we might very well do what you suggest.

Good post–and adds to a commentary at the Library Leadership Network in the article “Engaging the Community” ( http://pln.lyrasis.org/wiki/index.php/Engaging_the_community ), “Don’t join the conversation if you aren’t ready to listen.” (Obviously, you are ready to listen. I might add some of your comments to that article…)

As to setting a time limit: That’s not a bad idea in general, as spammers tend to look for old posts (apparently thinking they’re less likely to be checked regularly). For WordPress, at least, there’s an add-in to enforce a time limit; I use six months, Jessamyn (I think) uses a month or so.

Good post–and adds to a commentary at the Library Leadership Network in the article “Engaging the Community” ( http://pln.lyrasis.org/wiki/index.php/Engaging_the_community ), “Don’t join the conversation if you aren’t ready to listen.” (Obviously, you are ready to listen. I might add some of your comments to that article…)

As to setting a time limit: That’s not a bad idea in general, as spammers tend to look for old posts (apparently thinking they’re less likely to be checked regularly). For WordPress, at least, there’s an add-in to enforce a time limit; I use six months, Jessamyn (I think) uses a month or so.

Several other tips, in no particular order:
First, get really creative when you build your banned words list – not just the usual and commonly-used unusual spellings of obscenities, but the hacker variations, etc.

Second, the time filter is a good thing – six weeks to two months would be as long as I’d leave them open.

Third, start building or researching a banned domain list. You can do the obvious – ban country-specific domains (North Korea, China, and several of the former Soviet states are a good start), but you’ll have more to add.

Lastly, no policy will handle every situation, and the best thing I ever did in dealing with this was to form a roundtable to discuss the more “out there” problems and how to handle them. On questionable posts, I had all the members review the post and vote before removal. It was a bit more time-intensive, but it helped to get beyond individual personalities and emotional responses.

Several other tips, in no particular order:
First, get really creative when you build your banned words list – not just the usual and commonly-used unusual spellings of obscenities, but the hacker variations, etc.

Second, the time filter is a good thing – six weeks to two months would be as long as I’d leave them open.

Third, start building or researching a banned domain list. You can do the obvious – ban country-specific domains (North Korea, China, and several of the former Soviet states are a good start), but you’ll have more to add.

Lastly, no policy will handle every situation, and the best thing I ever did in dealing with this was to form a roundtable to discuss the more “out there” problems and how to handle them. On questionable posts, I had all the members review the post and vote before removal. It was a bit more time-intensive, but it helped to get beyond individual personalities and emotional responses.

I was thinking about this as I was planning a short holiday using Trip Advisor. The businesses that impressed me were those that responded negative comments on their website – not with “well you suck too” comments but “well, yess we see your point of view, here’s why it happened and how we’ll try to fix it”. The single business that impressed me *most* though, was the one that replied to every single comment – good and bad with a genuine, happy-to-communicate message. Made me think how often responding to community comments is seen as “damage control”, when maybe it could be a joint conversation…

I was thinking about this as I was planning a short holiday using Trip Advisor. The businesses that impressed me were those that responded negative comments on their website – not with “well you suck too” comments but “well, yess we see your point of view, here’s why it happened and how we’ll try to fix it”. The single business that impressed me *most* though, was the one that replied to every single comment – good and bad with a genuine, happy-to-communicate message. Made me think how often responding to community comments is seen as “damage control”, when maybe it could be a joint conversation…

I picked up on this post from Twitter. (Gotta give credit!) After reading what David said, I went to the actual post to read the comments. Whew!

One observation is that, as with many newspaper fora, the conversation seems to be dominated by a couple of voices. It annoys me (as a former director) that one of those voices clearly has an axe to grind, and has ignored the offer of having a personal conversation.

That being said my second observation is how respectful the library staff has been in the conversation. (But I will add that I am not surprised since I know [and respect] both David and Rob Banks.)

It takes courage to address the issue this way. Congratulations on being a role model for our institutions.

I picked up on this post from Twitter. (Gotta give credit!) After reading what David said, I went to the actual post to read the comments. Whew!

One observation is that, as with many newspaper fora, the conversation seems to be dominated by a couple of voices. It annoys me (as a former director) that one of those voices clearly has an axe to grind, and has ignored the offer of having a personal conversation.

That being said my second observation is how respectful the library staff has been in the conversation. (But I will add that I am not surprised since I know [and respect] both David and Rob Banks.)

It takes courage to address the issue this way. Congratulations on being a role model for our institutions.

Pretty nice job of having a long but generally respectful comment discussion. Especially when the whole thing is being monitored by a “Sarcastic Library Nazi”!

Pretty nice job of having a long but generally respectful comment discussion. Especially when the whole thing is being monitored by a “Sarcastic Library Nazi”!

It’s important to be open and allow comments. It’s also important to not come off heavy handed when replying (not that anybody is in your example, but I have witnessed that). I would say a more pressing problem is Michael’s observation. It isn’t even just someone with an axe to grind in your blog comments, but someone with an axe to grind who can get stuff printed in the local paper. That’s when things get tricky as to how to respond or if to respond at all.

It’s important to be open and allow comments. It’s also important to not come off heavy handed when replying (not that anybody is in your example, but I have witnessed that). I would say a more pressing problem is Michael’s observation. It isn’t even just someone with an axe to grind in your blog comments, but someone with an axe to grind who can get stuff printed in the local paper. That’s when things get tricky as to how to respond or if to respond at all.

This is a debate currently running at my co-op as we renovate our websites. I’ve linked to this discussion – thanks!

On my blog, I’ve not been closing comments on old posts *until* they get spambot problems and that has worked so far. I would have missed some interesting new developments on topics I wrote about long ago if I’d closed comments automatically.

I prefer to tell people up-front right before the comment box that comments are premoderated and outline the policy, but that’s been appearing and disappearing from my own blog recently, due to various upgrades by other authors on the same system who don’t think that’s as important as I do.

This is a debate currently running at my co-op as we renovate our websites. I’ve linked to this discussion – thanks!

On my blog, I’ve not been closing comments on old posts *until* they get spambot problems and that has worked so far. I would have missed some interesting new developments on topics I wrote about long ago if I’d closed comments automatically.

I prefer to tell people up-front right before the comment box that comments are premoderated and outline the policy, but that’s been appearing and disappearing from my own blog recently, due to various upgrades by other authors on the same system who don’t think that’s as important as I do.

[...] my post from last summer about comments at my library’s website? Here’s a follow-up post to that earlier [...]

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