I have blogged many times about the vicious, vituperative commentary on the local on-line newspaper site, making the point that the newspaper becomes liable for the commentary by not just promoting it, but allowing it to run amok without (adequate) oversight. The most flagrant bloggers were poofed, too little/too late, which caused a huge firestorm of protest from the bloggers, all of whom have a need to "O'Reilly" every article, every point, every headline, every reader comment, every blog. Methinks they all protest too much, but the hue and cry is always "my right" to write whatever I want under the guise of freedom of speech and/or freedom of the press.
I contacted the local newspaper and voiced my concern three separate times in the past six weeks, including my perspective that people from out of the area who read the blog postings get a skewed, racially inappropriate, homophobic, radically political picture of the Valley that ain't pretty, nor welcoming. Believe me, I was not the only one to register a protest, either in person or on-line. One new blogger began a petition last week to remove the offensive bloggers from the site, an idea that was laughed at by the more virulent bloggers who rule the blogosphere.
This afternoon, the following appeared where the blogs used to be:
We have removed the "Most Recent Reader Blogs" section on the front page of mydesert.com.
We have done this because the tone of our blogging community has become ugly and full of malicious attacks. Our intent was for readers to post links and thoughts to spur civil debate, but this is no longer happening.
We have therefore decided that we are not going to promote this kind of activity on mydesert.com. All bloggers may continue to use their blogs, and we will continue to monitor the blogs for abuse. But we will no longer help promote these types of attacks by placing them in a prominent spot on our front page or by having a specific page dedicated to bloggers. We are disappointed that we need to take these steps, but we see no better alternative.
The response from the bloggers to this information? Go to every single article posted on-line by the newspaper and write comments. Clog the website with what used to be posted on the blogs to make the point that the paper has "no right" to shut the bloggers down. One writer crowed that "we'll keep the staff so busy reading and deleting our comments" that they'll be glad to allow the blogs to return to the site!
It's the old "give an inch, take a mile" philosophy of life that I just don't get. If I allow one person to hand in one paper late once, I have to allow every student to hand in every paper late always, an application of civil rights that astounds me. I now see that same extension of entitlement applied to the bloggers: shut down our inappropriate blogs and we'll crash your paper. We don't have to grow up, employ mature judgment, realize the consequences of our actions/words beyond our own use of the "submit" button: we're just exercising our right to freedom of speech. The most egregious explanation: yes, we read the Terms of Use and hit the accept button, but the Terms don't apply to our blogs because we are bigger than the media website!
It's this thinking, this kind of action/reaction that led to the decision to shut them down, so what part of this is NOT their fault?
These posters have done nothing to enhance the communication of the news media, but have done much to malign the communities and the people who live in the Valley. Stand tall and strong, TDS, and keep the bloggers off the website.
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2 comments:
I heard it once said that "my right to throw a punch stops at your nose." I always liked it.
What the person meant is that our rights in a free society are there to keep us individually free, but end where the community begins. Different rules and regulations apply when others are thrown into the mix.
The bloggers and news commenters do have every right to express their opinion... unless and until those opinions start infringing on anyone else's rights. They throw the punch, but that punch better not land on anyone's nose, or a whole new set of rules comes into play!
The main issue with the internet, as with all of America and most of the Western world right now, is personal accountability. If the newspaper in question would post the full name, email address, and phone number/home address of every respondent, you would be sure that the number of rants and vituperative comments would crash. It is only because they can hide behind relative anonymity that they say these things. There is little to no accountability.
It is funny to me that the paper has taken a step toward making people accountable for what they say and those who are hiding behind anonymity and their "freedom of speech" or the ones complaining the loudest. Don't they understand that this paper is a private company that has as much right as they do to do "what it/they want to"? Just like those complaining about it.
Glad your complaints have gotten notice and positive steps have been taken by the paper to address those issues.
Follow up comment-- This is my quote of the day for today, and seems wonderfully apropos after reading your blog:
"Writing gives you the illusion of control, and then you realize it's just an illusion, that people are going to bring their own stuff into it."
- David Sedaris
*bionit
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