Should we keep or dump reader comments?

30 Comments

  • Zack - 5 years ago

    Dump them. You don’t post any of mine anyway.

  • Larrry - 8 years ago

    The Comment section is great, it has some good insite and local commenting can add information to stories BUT It is the total LACK of competent Moderation that is the problem.
    Place rules for Comments such as No Trolling posts, and childish/insulting comments will be cause for
    suspension/removing of posting privilege.
    Secondly Moderators should be NEUTRAL! The way it is now certain team fans are allowed to post anything they want, other teams fans comments in response get deleted. I posted a comment of where could I send concerns about the Moderation, IT GOT DELETED!
    I counted one Thread where one single Packers Troll had made over 15 insulting and useless remarks, not a one were deleted!
    Other Trolls have multiple user accounts to post. many times 5 or 6 of the first 7 or 8 comments are Childish insults.
    So I say if you cannot control your boards GET RID OF THE COMMENTS SECTION they are no good to anybody as they are.

  • stampnhawk - 11 years ago

    So with all the comments not to drop the comments, in this section and the story at PFT, the poll is still 50-41% for dumping the comments? Sounds like some of the selective removing of posts may be happening again within a pol.

    Comments make this site unique and give a broad reaction of other fans and fans of opposing teams, for better or worse...without them, its just another NFL blog and/or newswire and I am sure the story selection gets pretty dull without the flavouring of the fans. I don't doubt that the popularity has also brought out the worst in the internet, but that's the price of popularity, and if there are more controls such as the Facebook thing, then go for it. But removing comments would be a huge mistake.

  • aj - 11 years ago

    I go to PFT for the comments as much as the articles.

    People are complaining about comments being deleted because that is a huge problem with the site!

    There are either rogue moderators or technical problems with comments that have been going on for years and have caused me to stop visiting the site for months at a time.

    I left this same comment on the PFT article and it's been deleted twice so far, waiting to see if #3 is deleted.

  • R - 11 years ago

    Comments are dumb. No one cares what you guys think.

  • Mel McShay Jr - 11 years ago

    Florio, Keep the reader comments and dump your and your staff's opinions and editorials. Make your articles more like the daily one liners and keep your attempt at humor and intelligence out of it! Just put the facts out there and leave it alone.

  • mark - 11 years ago

    Only allow comments containing Seinfeld references...

  • jw - 11 years ago

    One commenter suggested integrating Facebook comments, and I think this is a good idea. Some readers DO post interesting points of view that sometimes aren't readily apparent in an article (see: this idea coming from a comment), but people can also post whatever they want under monikers with virtually no repercussions. Forcing a user to be tied to their Facebook profile, or at the very least jump through a lot of hoops if they really want to troll, could offer a little bit of accountability.

    If not, then maybe the comments should just be upgraded, i.e., one comment "view" could be by comment rank (most thumbed up to least thumbed up to most thumbed down or something), while another could just be plain old chronological.

  • sundancejoe - 11 years ago

    You could have a forums section of the site. Not saying you need page views but you sure could get plenty more that way.

  • MP - 11 years ago

    PLEASE keep the comments section. I come to the PFT site specifically to read the comments that other fans are expressing about the news or topic in the article. It is a very useful and unique perspective that specifically brings me to this site. There are plenty of sports news sites to get straight news, so for me it would make this site much less appealing.

    Most sports fans who are online are pretty good at scanning and scrolling by useless and annoying comments to get at the insights. (For folks who don't like the comments section, duh, don't scroll down to read them, problem solved) Consider soliciting for volunteer comment moderators if it is becoming too onerous for the staff - you might be surprised at people willing to step up.

  • Terry Hicks - 11 years ago

    I don't really care about the other readers comments... sort of neutral. It would be interesting to see other 'insiders' comments on your stories. How about Al Michaels', Rodney Harrison's Chris Collingsworth's take on your stories. That could be more insightful and compelling than Joe Donko's opinion.

  • Susie Yonan - 11 years ago

    I look forward to the comments, on articles about my team. They are often hilarious, and other times I learn something new.

  • Jim F - 11 years ago

    There is a lot of good information in the comments. They include insight from both the clubs view and the players view. Frequently I see what looks like spin from some player's agent. Then there are the "homers", spouting what they see through their homer glasses. This area is where the real idiots shine but hey, just look around at your work. Unless you are really fortunate, you can see that clowns and bozos are fairly evenly dispersed throughout life and you just learn to deal with them. Granted, some days there seems to be a "mad rush" of them but heck, that's what vacation days are for. So my argument would be to leave the comments alone. Many of them are great, very insightful and a big reason why I read this blog. I'm an NFL junky. I'm a good avionics technician and try to be the best Dad I can be for my 3 children. I'm an o.k. husband, but Pro Football Is how I roll. It's where I get my kicks so don't "F" up the best NFL sight in this country. Live with the boneheads who want to be heard. Please continue with your reasoned takes since we don't all have Law degree's and don't understand the legalities of the "Cap" and free agency. Most of us are pretty good with a mouse and can quickly click away from really "cornball' comments but leave that decision to us. I remember when just you and Rosenthal did most (all) of the writing and you have always put out a good product and entertained the hell out of me. You've brought on a number of additional good writers and kept the quality of your product up. I've always read the comments and gotten quite a kick out of them. They have helped to make your site the very best on-line football sight that there is. You can never get rid of the Clowns and Bozo's. They breed, they multiply, they're here to stay. (Just look around your work area) But in all seriousness, this has been a great sight for many years. Comments have always been a part of the product you present. Let the reader make the decision to "click away" and thanks for the many years of first rate entertainment. (That's how you roll.)

  • shannon - 11 years ago

    Would not commenting be a vote to dump the comments?

  • Thomas Hoctor - 11 years ago

    I found PFT a few years ago on accident and IMMEDIATELY put it in my favorites list and visit it multiple times daily ! I do not visit this site religiously to read a bunch of stupid comments chastising writers about minor spelling errors and using different punctuations to sneak curse words into their comments. I love this site because of Mike's vision for it and dedication to making it a lean fact filled and often hilarious take on the NFL . My take is that the people who are against losing the comments are the same ones who have multiple fake Twitter handles and think their actually unpaid WRITERS for PFT. Lastly to all the people who lament losing the comments section, ponder this ! If the majority of you had held yourself and your co commenters to HALF the standards that PFT writers do we would not even be having this conversation right now ! P.S. that sound you just heard was the mike getting dropped. Have a nice day !

  • tillie - 11 years ago

    Get rid of them except on certain issues where you want feedback.
    And OF COURSE all of the people wanting comments are the ones commenting on this thread. You can tell by the votes...most people want to get rid of them.
    Dump them.

  • DJP - 11 years ago

    Perhaps set up a forum which is associated with PFT. Then readers can have their say, and the stories are streamlined.

  • PJ - 11 years ago

    Comments are for trolls. If you want to have a conversation, email Florio or talk to a human.

    I think if all websites did this poll, the comments would die everywhere and with good reason.

  • btowngetsdown - 11 years ago

    I say dump the comments. I never leave them anyway. Ever!!

  • Leggett - 11 years ago

    Really? How about some freedom of speech? If people don't like the comments then don't scroll down. This is what's wrong with America - soft weak people that somehow get offended if people don't spew the party line as it were. One day it will be a crime to be politically incorrect.

  • JackStraw - 11 years ago

    The comments section consistently contains some of the most hilarious feedback I've ever seen on the web and is something I look forward to reading, particularly when the subject is controversial (Manti Te'o comes to mind). I understand that there's a cost associated with paying someone to sift through the nonsense, but consider that a built in cost of doing business on the world wide web. Pay some 28 year old loser with a bachelor's degree $10/hour to sit at home in a remote office editing out the .001% of the population that posts insensitive material and be done with it.

    If my suggestion above is the route you choose go, consider this my cover letter. E-mail me for my resume.

  • blackstrat - 11 years ago

    The comments are often as interesting as the text (sometimes more so).
    When they are drivel, I just skip over them. No harm.
    More often, I laugh and or appreciate a new perspective on things.
    Removing them for your stated purpose; time issues deleting etc....defeats the purpose of your original intent.....unless your original intent was to get rich and get your name out.
    So I say, keep it as is....You know what they say about if it ain't broke.........!

  • Joetorious - 11 years ago

    Your site traffic will plummet if you drop the comments. Do you think people actually visit to ready your attempting-to-be-witty prose at the end of each blog entry? Answer: No. They visit despite it.

  • Paul - 11 years ago

    If you dump the comments, I will stop reading PFT. Without comments I would just read Rotoworld.com as they provide the info and usually faster than you. I read Rotoworld to get the news, head over to PFT to read the comments and see what the local fans may have to say about a player who was cut, traded, etc. If you care so much about wasting time, just stop editing the comments. I'm a big boy, I can handle scrolling past an idiotic comment. Cut the comments and you lose something that makes PFT fun to read along with many readers. Please Dont

  • Turd ferguson - 11 years ago

    Comments are only useful for trolling other trolls. No sane person spends much time there.

  • Ski - 11 years ago

    These have to stay. I love reading the comments because you get a (ususally shaded, but often insightful/hilarious) view of the local population's take on an issue. It lets me see what the local fanbase thinks of a post, instead of trusting Florio as the Gospel.

  • For What it's Worth - 11 years ago

    Dump them. Never read comments, and when I do I instantly regret it. Get rid of them.

  • Brohamma - 11 years ago

    For the love of god Mike.. do NOT drop the comments. Think about when this whole thing started all those years ago and the celebration that went on when you hit that first big endorsement. Yea, I know.. you have a big T#*d-Eatting grin on your face.. even our beloved T-watch went due to "political" issues; and that is understandable. Honestly though, you gave us readers and posters a home and we in-turn gave you the backing to get to this point now. Don't pull the plug on comments because it would be pulling it on us.

  • reader - 11 years ago

    I agree 100% with the above poster. If I want more thoughts on the matter, what better way than to read the comments?

  • JJ - 11 years ago

    I like the comments. When I want to get a little more info on a story or see what people are saying about a story that matters to me, I read all the comments. Yes some are dumb, but don't punish us all for that

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