Let’s Use the Online Comment? Section of Newspapers More

Uncivil rhetoric is characterizing this year's presidential campaign. But compared with the comments found on news sites across the country, the Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton campaigns seem rather tame. Online comment sections have become known as places where incivility runs rampant. Many think there is no hope left for comment sections, so there is no reason to try to improve them. But as a communication professor who studies the comments section, not only do I believe that there is still hope for the space, I also think that comment sections can be beneficial to news users and organizations alike. With my colleagues at the Engaging News Project, I?ve done a number of studies focused on online comment sections because we know they matter. They matter to news organizations because they can provide a way to increase brand loyalty.