If I had to post my real name here on FR, I doubt if I would ever comment again. In fact, I would think FR would die.
Massachusetts? It figures...
You’ll have the same 8 people commenting on everything and debating among themselves. Soo....stupid.
Talk about killing the free goose that lays the golden eggs. Reader comments are one of the three or four top-read parts of conventional newspapers. For the newspapers it is very popular free content. Now they are going to start charging people to provide them with free content. It would be difficult to think of a dumber plan.
Paper to readers: Comments now cost 99 cents and your name
_____________________________________________
Great idea. Jim should initiate this here to end double posts, vanities, and other idiot replies. Like the one I’m posting now.
I dunno. After being on the web for 15 years or so, I'm coming to the conclusion that the intelligence services (state, fed, local, international) know who everyone is but it's we who post under monikers who only mask ourselves from each other.
“Ellie Light” here, reporting for duty
LOL. Well, that paper’s readership and circulation will likely go right down the crapper.
Back in the day, I made “Moozle”, but for the last five years or so, I’ve used Jon Watts, my real name. I’m glad to stand up for my comments, and have had to admit to the occaisional incorrect fact or two over the years. Better to learn in a debate, I think.
As far as being watched.. Look on federales! You want me, come get me. Trouble is, I’m law-abiding, so you’ll have to make something up.
They own the website they get to make the rules. Post your opinions elsewhere.
I’m guessing there will be no stories with anonymous sources either.
Hm. It would be cool if FR let us choose to donate on a per-comment basis. You could preset the amount in settings and post away.
People run newspapers because they can’t do anything else. Morons.
Come to think of it, with some tight rules, and say a modest fee paid in advance to comment, like ten dollars, with each comment costing a dollar, they might make some serious money. But with a twist.
Here’s the idea. Have a news and comments section, somewhat like a newspaper, but also have a very large *advertising* section, at very low advertisement prices, a fraction of the newspaper price.
If you don’t want to spend the money to comment, then look at the advertisements to be (non-refundable) *credited* with money, up to $10.
You could get virtual money by watching video ads, or printing out coupons. Maybe a special page where you could put several coupons, to save paper.
You could also get virtual money by filling in surveys. But it all comes back to commenting for a dollar a comment.
Of course, very few people would go through the hassle of paying $10, when all they had to do is look at ads, print out coupons, and do surveys.
Then, the real big pitch would be if they paid a columnist to post an editorial, and people could comment directly to them.
How many conservatives, for example, would gladly part with a dollar, real or virtual, to send a topical message to Michelle Malkin, for example? How many liberals would use all 10 comments to send hate messages to her?
She would just agree to read them, not to comment back.
Funny how this kind of stuff starts during the Obama regime.
I would be perfectly happy to post my opinion under my own name, except I’m afraid of sickos and the government harassing me.
Oh no!!! Not The Attleboro (Mass.) Sun-Chronicle!!!
;’)
thanks rawhide.
Have a great weekend all.