Last week the Toronto Sun became the latest media outlet to opt out of online commenting. In a note to readers from James Wallace, vice president of editorial, the newspaper values feedback from readers, but things have gotten out of hand.

    “As a paper, we pride ourselves both on dishing out and taking criticism – especially when the latter comes from our readers. And part of that conversation has taken place on our online comment boards. However, the increasing use of Sun comment boards for anonymous, negative, even malicious personal attacks, albeit by a minority, has led us to conclude our current commenting system is not serving the interests of the majority of our readers,” says Wallace.As a result, the Sun is removing comments from most of its online articles until they can find a more workable solution that creates accountability. They are also stopping anonymous comments on their site. The Sun will continue to post stories, editorials and columns to social media sites like Facebook and Twitter where readers can comment, and the Sun invites readers to continue to reach out directly to its writers and editors via email, on social media and through its more traditional “letters to the editor.””We regret having to make this decision and are working on a solution that will best serve you, our readers, and the Sun. Meanwhile, keep your comments, views and opinions coming. We value them.And thank you for your understanding,” Wallace adds.The Toronto Sun is in good company in its decision, as we explained in “Pros & Cons of Commenting: Making Them Work For You, Not Against You” a few months ago. Huffington Post was the first big-name media outlet to do away with anonymous comments, opting to require a Facebook log-in instead.Others like Popular Science and Reuters stopped comments altogether. While some outlets have said the removal of comments is temporary (e.g., Chicago Sun-Times), only a few – like the St. Louis Post-Dispatch – have allowed comments to return.Insider Take:Whether anonymous or not, it is easy to be brave behind the keyboard, saying things we wouldn’t normally say in person or even on the phone. The trend to say whatever thoughts pop into our heads has seeped into every avenue of our online lives. While our thoughts are sometimes well formed and important, a minority of news consumers have taken to media outlets and other online forums to turn productive discourse into ugly conversations that offer little, if any, real value.Like other outlets, the Sun felt the detriment to its readers and writers and editors was greater than the value gleaned from the comments, so it took action. Other outlets will follow suit, until the industry works together to find a solution.Whether media organizations require online registration or sign-ins through Facebook which has its own vetting system, something has to change. We can’t rid the Internet of trolls, nor can we banish them from every online outlet or social media platform, but we can require some accountability and impose some standards for acceptable behavior.~ Dana E. Neuts, Subscription Insider