Collegiate Times

One of the best things you can do to limit vulgar comments would be to screen out offensive opinion articles. A recent article "Racism sexism still prevalent today despite what many think" is a good example of the ignorance that finds it's way onto our opinion page. Filtering out articles like that will go a long way to calming down people in the comments section.

One problem with the DIGG system is that controversial (but appropriate) comments get buried.

For example, if there's a comment about gun control, the anti-violence-prevention folks will send the link to their friends, who will all show up to mod down the comment. And frankly, the gun control folks are likely to do the same for comments with which they disagree.

One solution is to keep track of both up-moderation and down-moderation. If something only gets down votes, it's probably inappropriate; likewise, if something only gets up votes, it's probably okay; but if it gets lots of both, down-moderation should be mostly ignored.

I think Cho would find this offensive.

Just add a report spam button if necessary, the community moderating would do the opposite of what you want by, as the above poster stated, burying reasonable arguments disliked by the majority.

There are never amazingly large numbers of comments and when there are a report abuse button would allow you to quickly find the really bad ones.

We're all adults here, how about we just leave the comments alone. If someone makes an offensive comment we can respond like the academics we are training to be rather than just sweeping it under the rug and pretending it never happened.

Shameless plug for the Virginia Tech subreddit:

http://www.reddit.com/r/VirginiaTech/

I'd suggest you take a look at ESPN's comment format. You have to register, but they rarely ban people. The best part about it is it has a spam button so issues get taken care of quickly. If you do anything, get a spam button.

Also, I don't get why you're so opposed to making people register. For one, you don't have many commentors to begin with. People will be less likely spam if they have to register. On top of that, if they do register and spam, you can ban the account. It's ridiculously simple. Don't take this to be offensive but maybe you should get out of the meetings with people on their high horses and just use some common sense.

One of the things you agree to when commenting now is not to post a comment that "lacks any sort of structure." Perhaps if the editors applied that rule to what articles were published there would be more thoughtful comments? Are you really that concerned about online comments to the newspaper being harmful to the campus community? Is unrestricted speech that much of a threat? I for one am glad that you are doing everything you can to show how irrelevant newspapers have become in the internet age. You don't have enough respect for your readership to filter out vulgar or pointless comments so you the High Czar must selflessly filter it for them. Someone actually gets paid to filter comments on the student newspaper? No wonder tuition is so high.

This comment is not actually left by the Provost, but by my leaving it in his name I'm trying to make the point of how dangerous the current system can be when no registration is required.

As a semi-regular reader of the CT, I often don't comment because I don't feel like getting into an e-brawl with Anonymous writers. But I'm always happy to exchange opinions, particularly constructive and well-reasoned ones, with people who are willing to take responsibility for their views.

For now I remain

Dr. Mark McNamee, Provost

One of the concerns brought up at the above mentioned meeting between university community members and CT representatives was the lack of accountability and constructive dialogue on the CT website. Few articles generate comments, but those that do often solicit hostile, threatening, demeaning remarks that are ultimately detrimental to the campus climate.

Sharing the readership numbers with us is useful and educational. However, even though less than 25% of the online readership resides in Blacksburg, the perception will remain that the CT is Virginia Tech's newspaper. Thus we should care how its tone and content reflects on us.

Dr. Rick Ferraro (?)

What are you afraid of, THE TRUTH? If you're all adults and made it to college, then don't YOU think you can handle the truth or do you need the PC police taking care of your feelings, like the military did in the Fort Hood massacre?

I would think at the college with the largest MASS MURDER in US history you would realize the only person making good decisions for you is you and you need an open information system in order to do that to the best of your ability.

Take a gander and think about it, please.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYYrWrS6fU4

Are my comments and links causing you concern? Is the MSA threatening to sue you for leaving my comments up? Am I educating the student populace to the TRUTH about them?

http://www.meforum.org/603/islamisms-campus-club-the-muslim-students

Muslim Students Association

The MSA preaches self-segregation: its newly established National Religious Accommodations Task Force directs local MSA chapters to insist that universities provide separate housing and meals for Muslims only. The segregation practiced by the MSA has actually marginalized its own female members: there is a common attitude that strict segregation should exist between the genders and that sisters should not appear in public. On an MSA mailing list, a popular article gives a long list of conditions that women must fulfill to gain access to the mosque. These include obtaining permission from her male guardian, wearing hijab [veil], not wearing "fancy clothes" or perfume, not mixing with men, leaving immediately after the prayer, etc. Additionally The MSA has played a major role in spreading Wahhabism.

http://www.stopshariahnow.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=459&Itemid=157

Yet consider some of these recent activities of the MSA:

*

At a meeting in Queensborough Community College in New York in March 2003, a guest speaker named Faheed declared, "We reject the U.N., reject America, reject all law and order. Don't lobby Congress or protest because we don't recognize Congress. The only relationship you should have with America is to topple it Eventually there will be a Muslim in the White House dictating the laws of Shariah."[2]
*

During an October 2000 anti-Israeli protest, former MSA president Ahmed Shama at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) stood before the Israeli consulate in Los Angeles, shouting "Victory to Islam! Death to the Jews!" MSA West president Sohail Shakr declared at the same rally, "the biggest impediment to peace [in the Middle East] has been the existence of the Zionist entity in the middle of the Muslim world."[3]
*

Prior to September 11, 2001, the MSA formally assisted three Islamic charities in fundraising: the Holy Land Foundation, Global Relief, and Benevolence Foundation. After that date, all three were accused by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of having serious links to terrorism and were ordered closed. The MSA issued a formal statement of protest: "How three of the nation's largest Muslim charities could be made inoperable at the peak of the giving season of Ramadan seemed unbelievable."[4]



http://www.meforum.org/603/islamisms-campus-club-the-muslim-students

It has everything to do with what we are talking about. How PC is killing people and America. Hopefully you will make the connection how Islam is using the sensitive PC crowd and Americas rights and freedoms to destroy us.

EVERYTHING to do with censorship, intimidation, "MODERATION"................

It has everything to do with the fact that you are a troll. Yes Muslims suck but that's not the issue here.

Does the fact that CT moved and buried Yolande's faux comment indicate CT Admin does not approve of her writing and profiting from the Mass Murder and her 10 sec of fame at the remembrance ceremony?

Let's not leave out she was a mentor/professor of Cho's and admitted confronted him, instead of being a professional and an adult, and assisting him in getting help.

And let's not forget her Thug life tattoo and her comment "Giovanni discusses her "Thug Life" tattoo, which she sports to honor slain rapper Tupac Shakur. "I'd rather be with the thugs than the people who are complaining about them, for sure," she explains."

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/flash/vd.asp?PID=12012&aud=1&{slinkprefix}&nav=1