If It Bleeds, It Leads...To Troubling Comments

Crime stories in many papers are the most-read stories. They are also often the most commented-upon. But while comments are considered an essential way to engage and keep readers, they also can lead to problems. In January, the Thompson (Manitoba) Citizen shut down its Facebook page due to racist comments. In November, the Robesonion, a paper in Lumberton, North Carolina, had to ban comments about race on stories that don’t have a racial element.

Last week, an incident in Oshawa, Ontario, at the DurhamRegion.com, a portal for a group of area publications, led to a decision to turn off comments on crime stories after a story about the death of an African American teenager resulted in racist comments appearing on the site. “Lately, when the suspect was black, it brought out the most vile, repulsive and offensive comments we have ever had on our website,” Mike Johnston, the publication’s managing editor wrote in a column explaining the decision. In the past, Johnston and his staff had tried to address the problem by blocking commenters, but the problem became too pervasive. “The hateful comments continued to spew onto our website and that we will not permit,” Johnston wrote.

Elana Newman, the Dart Center’s Research Director and the McFarlin Professor of Psychology at the University of Tulsa, has also found that comments have a negative impact on familes and friends of crime victims. “I have talked with crime victims and friends of crime victims who have experienced the comments as a ‘second assault’ due to the second guessing, the blaming, the –ism of the day: racism, sexism, etc.,” Newman said. “Sadly I don’t think the comments help foster community engagement with the issues, support of those affected by the event (perp or victim), or help solve crimes.”