Moderating law blog comments : The New York Times protocol
For law firms looking to establish a standard protocol for moderating comments on their blog (not everyone can take the Greenfield or O'Keefe do as we feel approach), the New York Times standard may be apropos.
The New Times frequently asked questions about comments provides straight forward answers of the follow questions:
- Why do you moderate readers' comments?
- What kind of comments are you looking for?
- Do you edit comments?
- When and where will my comment be displayed?
- Should I use my real name when making a comment?
- What about criticism of The Times?
- Should I post new information about a breaking news story? What if I see an error in a blog post or article? What is the best way to suggest a correction?
I've heard the trail to success leaves clues. Putting aside any political views you have of the paper, you could do worse than following the editorial standards of the Times.
Comment moderation could be even trickier for blogging lawyers. A good policy statement near the comment box could head off some potentially expensive misunderstandings, particularly when it comes to potential client interactions and disclosure of sensitive information. I'm amazed at how often people put potentially sensitive information in a blog comment rather than just e-mailing me.