We're here to inform you, not to insult you

Comments sections can get personal real fast. Nowadays it's easy to hide behind a computer and a fake profile, and insulting people has never been easier. In addition people forget that they are not just talking to another user, but an actual real person with actual feelings.

Part of being an editor is keeping track of comments. There is the idea floating around that we publish or hide comments arbitrarily and on a whim, but that's not the case. On our website they have to be validated before being published, while on social media the validation process starts after publication.

During the pandemic the comment section was a battlefield. It was hard to keep track of information and misinformation, facts, and the of ever-changing restrictions and rules in each country. As journalists it's our duty to inform you, give you all the information you need in order to form beliefs and make your choices.

We are here to seek the truth and report on it.

As long as a comment is not misinforming or offensive, it will be published, even if it does not reflect our personal opinion. And in cases where we are in doubt, we consult each other to make sure we are not just hiding them due to our personal beliefs.

And that's how it should be. We are after all living in a country where freedom of speech is valued.

So us hiding your comments is not a personal choice. It's a matter of ethics.

Ethics I wished everyone had, because this battlefield I spoke about didn't start or end with the pandemic. It was just the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

Scrolling through comments day after day can be exhausting. Facebook is especially hard to keep track of because of the huge platform it provides and comments being posted by the minute without needing validation. So sometimes it takes a moment before we realize that there is a hefty discussion happening before we take action.

But it's not just the insults and offensive comments that are taking a toll on someone. It's the complaining as well.

31 May was World No Tobacco Day, a campaign to inform people and raise awareness of the dangers of tobacco. A day where we as well published several articles covering this issue. I was working and there was one comment that really stuck with me. It was about how we should stop ruining smoking for them.

You see this kind of comment pretty often. Whenever we report on something uncomfortable, people are taking it personally and are trying to blame us for ruining their guilty pleasure or lifestyles. It is not our fault. We are just laying down facts.

If you do not agree with our content, that's cool. What is not cool is people needing to tell us how much they do not agree with us, using insulting tones and emojis. Same thing with not caring about our content. You obviously care enough to tell us how irrelevant our articles are.

And yet we publish these comments, because that's part of our job.

Fortunately these comments are only a fraction of the comments we get and reading all the positive and encouraging messages truly makes my day. A good interacting with our readers should take place and I am glad that we can still make that happen.

Could you argue now that I am taking it too personally? You could. I'm honestly intrigued why people like to comment and troll people on the internet. If content does not interest me, I skip it; leaving an insulting or complaining comment is the last thing I'd do. This is probably why the comment section has always fascinated me.

But I think we could all use a reminder that this is a job, with real people sitting behind the screens and articles, and that it's not a personal choice whether or not comments are published or hidden.

So please, comment away.

(But keep it civil y'all)