Google News comments hardly drawing anyone
Steve Safran September 12th, 2007
Steve Rubel notices that Google has only drawn about 100 comments in 30 days since it started allowing comments on stories in Google News. Why? Because only people mentioned in the stories are allowed to comment. They have to email in their comments. Then people at Google have to vet the emails. What’s the big deal? Why not just open the comments to everyone?
4 Comments Add your own
1. Chip | September 12th, 2007 at 2:58 pm
What is this obsession you have with user comments on every single thing on the internet?
2. Lurker | September 12th, 2007 at 3:23 pm
Not to be contrary, but my quick survey of the comments linked from the listing page shows that most of them are from people NOT in the original story. Perhaps they are just the ones who submitted comments, but Google is deciding who is worthy and their original intent is getting lost in the mix.
3. Rocker | September 13th, 2007 at 6:29 am
Safran: Comment blather is ubiquitous online now…and not without utility - we have it on our sites and it’s a popular feature. But allowing the subjects of stories a forum to comment, apart from the general audience, to me is a very different, and intriguing concept. I think that is…or could be…a big deal. Not huge, big. If Google has moved away from that idea and is just selecting what they deem the most interesting comments from the general public, that’s different…not so exciting.
4. invitedmedia | September 13th, 2007 at 7:09 am
i’m not convinced everyone wants to comment, but NO ONE wants to be told they can’t. they’ll go where they are welcomed instead.
a little local blog is getting traffic the local 100 year old newspaper would kill for. but many of the postings you’d think would generate some controversy wind up with only a couple comments. others take off on a totally differnet tangent (like that hasn’t happened here) and are loaded with comments.
that’s the difference when you put the AUDIENCE in control.
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