At times, comments on sites such as this one are little more than graffiti. Graffiti artists use "tags" to protect their identity. They are vilating the law. But, what law is anonymous blogger violating? Yes, I know that it is common practice on these types of sites to allow users to sign names other than their own, But why? Does this anonymity allow for comments that are more honest? Does it allow for more insightful, thoughtful commentary? Or, does this kind of anonymity only provide a mask, a camouflage, or worse a deception? How credible is the insight or trustworthy the comment from an anonymous source?
Being able to comment in an open forum is a wonderful tool to exercise your right to free speech and to express one’s opinion. I recognize that some who comment on this site are thoughtful citizens. Some may only write because they can be anonymous. Nonetheless, no newspaper will publish letters to the editor unless you submit basic identifying information such as your name, email address, telephone number, and in some cases your home address. Would printed articles or viewpoints in the newspaper be published without an authentic byline? Should comments or viewpoints published on these types of wen site have lower standards?
One’s signature, if you will, gives weight and meaning to a document. It gives the document and its contents credibility and authenticity. Without it, as the adage goes, the contents are not worth the paper (or cyberspace) on which they are printed. I reread past comments on a local news site about a highway death, the misbehavior of a public official, a person’s retirement, the town’s budget woes, or the good deeds of caring citizens. These comments provide an interesting contrast to letters to the editor found in any newspaper. One may disagree with the letter writers but seldom are they disagreeable or disrespectful.
Do anonymous comments have any value? Or, do they simply deface the landscape of public discussion? Removing the cloak of anonymity from comments may result in fewer of them, but it may also provide a perfect example of less being more.
Francis Zappone
