Comment is not free (not at The Sun Chronicle anyway)

The comments section of websites can be a bit of a minefield. Now popularly lampooned in satirical magazine Private Eye, they can attract postings that are trying to be funny, are full of ignorance, full of spite or all three. But one US newspaper is trying to nip the abuse in the bud.

The Columbia Journalism Review has flagged up a Guardian article which looks at an interesting use of paywall technology – purely in the comments section.

The Sun Chronicle, a paper in Massachusetts, has put the paywall in place to try and prevent the appearance of what they describe as abusive, obscene or “otherwise nasty” comments.

In an interview with CJR on Wednesday, Sun Chronicle publisher Oreste D’Arconte explained that money has nothing to do with the decision.

The one-time fee of 99cents, she says, is to cover the charge of processing the credit card, which they use to verify the user’s name and location before discarding the details.

The Web staff felt they were wasting too much time deleting inappropriate comments and policing repeat offenders. D’Arconte and his staff wanted a way to encourage dialogue, while holding people accountable for what they said. Those who pay the fee and post abusive material will be banned from the comments section.

It may make life easier in terms of moderation but whether the 15,000-strong readership feel that their comment is important enough to warrant the joining fee and hassle of entering their card details remains to be seen.