EDITORIAL: Comment forums should promote healthy dialogues devoid of insults, personal attacks


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As Election Day nears, Central Michigan Life plans to cover the evening’s action with live updates on results and reactions from members of the Central Michigan University community.

We also plan to announce our presidential endorsement on Oct. 24. Other publications across the nation and around the globe have done the same. We know that some of our readers will approve of our recommendation, while others will undoubtedly malign our opinion.

We believe these opposing reactions and subsequent debates help make American democracy stronger. That sentiment carries over to the comment sections on cm-life.com and on our social media platforms.

As student media, we welcome constructive discussions between people with varying ideologies on a vast number of subjects. We strive to be an open forum for a diverse set of voices.

What we will not accept, however, are personal attacks targeting our sources and staff members for the stories they share or the content they create. There is no place in our forums for crude and cruel discourse.

We believe that these types of comments are not constructive. They do not offer any measure of substance to readers. In fact, some comments discourage readers from engaging in our discussions. We believe in preserving the dignity of two-way engagement with our audience.

Cyber trolling has become an unfortunate pastime for many users on the Internet. We argue that many of these commenters would not be so bold if they were forced to speak face-to-face.

Since the advent of online message boards, users have had free reign to interact with each other anonymously. Bringing that open forum to newspaper and magazine websites offered a chance for publications to interact with users in an exciting new field a communication.

This mechanism for deeper discussion on important topics quickly turned into safe havens of vitriol and hate spewed against others without the repercussions of embarrassment or public scorn.

That’s why many publications like Central Michigan Life have community comment guidelines to help protect the integrity of their forums. We aim to create a space where people can speak intelligently – and passionately – with each other about the topics they hold dear.

Healthy discourse doesn’t have to be pretty, but it has to be more than obscenities, racial slurs and attacks on other commenters. Controversial views and stances can and be should explored on our website and social media feeds like Facebook and Twitter.

What we will not accept are comment streams that devolve into racist and sexist insults and misinformation.

We believe in and support readers’ rights to fundamentally disagree with our staff.

There is a huge difference between discourse and derision, and these kinds of comments represent the latter. Discourse is an exchange of ideas, no matter how heated. Derision is making a singular decision to hurl insults.

To summarize: if you wouldn’t want someone saying it to you, don’t say it to someone else. That’s not being weak or politically correct. It’s an effort to keep the conversation honest – and out of the hands of trolls trying to derail that discourse.

Some of these kinds of comments come from people with different alma maters without any ties to the university. They are often 60-year-old white males with nothing better to do with their time than to troll social media for their next target.

Do not attacks our sources, staff or other members of the CMU community that we report on. Do not copy spam from another comment board.

We reserve the right to ban users for the repeated use of vulgar language or continued personal attacks.

Most of all, we will not delete your comments, or ban you, for disagreeing with content. Refutations of fact and the value of stories to our audience are fine. We encourage all of our readers to send us letters to the editor if they take issue with something we publish.

As always, we will publish letters in print and online that are critical of Central Michigan Life.

As we follow news closely, we understand that the world can be an ugly place. Reality is harsh and the truth hurts. We will never shy away from looking at society and our community with a skeptical eye.

We expect that readers and commenters to do the same, but with candor, grace, and in a way that helps foster healthy debates.

We understand that the news industry requires thick skin. This request for civility isn’t about us. We serve a wide audience of young and older adults alike, but the occasional teenager or 70-year-old may read us as well.

Civil discourse is what makes America great. Let’s not forget that when we engage each other in debates online and on social media.

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About Ben Solis

Ben Solis is the Managing Editor of Central Michigan Life. He has served as a city and university ...

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