Comments on Newspapers' Web Sites Create a Better Public Sphere

When mainstream newspapers provide their content online they give readers an opportunity to easily become active in dialogue about important community and even world issues. In this way, the Internet versions of newspapers function as a public sphere, which is defined in Jurgen Habermas' theory as an area in social life where people can get together and freely discuss and identify societal problems and through that discussion influence political action.

Newspapers, especially local papers, provide an easily accesible forum for discussion that may not have happened had it not been for the ability to provide immediate feedback on something that you have just read online.

In my small hometown of Muncie, Indiana, I've seen extremely active discussion when I read the stories at the Star Press, which I grew up reading everyday in its paper format. Just recently, I saw a very active thread with more than 60 posts. The discussions encompassed a vast range of issues such as the differences between the basketball team from the Southside of town and the rural county school, which had recently won the sectional championship game. The commentors discussed the issues of race, teen pregnancy, socioeconomic status, and the impact of sports on young people's lives.

Many bloggers and columnists for national newspapers and magazines end their posts with a question to stimulate discussion and responses to other comments on their site. The readers' answers to these questions often create a dialogue amongst themselves that the author can revisit and respond to. This creates dialogue and increases traffic to the site, which is beneficial to the newspaper because the more traffic a site receives the more revenue it makes from the advertisments posted on the page. I was also encouraged to end all of my blog posts with a question by my Writing for the Web teacher, Patricia Lamberti.

Though comment sections can sometimes get out of hand with anonymous commentors disregarding respect for others' opinions under the guise of anonymity, they still provide a vital space for discussion among citizens of a community who are reading the paper.

Former Loyola Phoenix editor-in-chief Katie Drews wrote a column in February about the difficulties editors face in drawing the line between progressive discussion and derogatory disgression. She wrote, "The tool allows people to immediately post an emotionally charged remark, along with the protection of anonymity. No filters, no edits and sometimes no thought before the click of the mouse."

The Poynter Institute even offers guidelines (or pointers hehe) on how to handle the comment section. In the world of the Internet, it's important for newspapers to keep their fingers on the pulse of the world and the comment section allows journalists to keep in better touch and communication with their readers.

I love to comment on articles and blogs. I do so much more often when they are written by people that I know. I love being a part of something greater than myself. The public sphere of the Internet allows my thoughts and opinoins to heard among the multitudes of voices that fill the Internet. Most of all as a journalist I love to see my articles commented on whether it is positive or negative. I appreciate the feedback. I often comment back to my readers to better faciliate the public sphere in my own little corner of the World Wide Web.