In today’s opinion column, “A Tribute to Fribble,” staff columnist Jon Miller ’15 discusses The Dartmouth’s online commenting system and our comments policies.
In 2013, The Dartmouth launched its new website, which included the integration of Disqus, our current online commenting platform. This system allows users to vote comments up or down and to respond directly to one another.
Our policies are publicly available on our website and can be found here. We do not edit any comments, and we only remove comments that are off-topic or contain vulgarity, inappropriate language or ad hominem attacks.
Many of our peer newspapers use Disqus, as do some national media outlets. Online comments, however, are a subject of controversy in the journalist community, as there is no one platform that has become standard in the industry — and some outlets have removed comments altogether. We remain committed to fostering constructive dialogue and encourage our readers to further the discussion on our coverage.
We also welcome dialogue on our policies and encourage our readers to comment online through Disqus, write letters to the editor or even submit full-length opinion columns. As always, I welcome any responses, criticism or concerns and can be reached at editor@thedartmouth.com or my personal blitz.
Katie McKay ’16 is theEditor-in-Chief of The Dartmouth.
