I do not know, but I thought the title was a bit in your face. 😆 However, I was reading Your Comment Is Awaiting Moderation by Andrea Lewis. She expressed her frustration about commenting and seeing the message that her comment will not show up yet because it is being moderated. She feels she is not considered important.
I use moderation to prevent spammers. For those with newer sites, you will not understand. For those with larger sites that have been around more than a couple years, you know the frustration of spammers. My usual policy is to moderate a person’s first comment to the site. Once they have been approved, they are welcome to post. I have Intense Debate, which also helps and allows people with a good reputation to be seen right away.
Comments are important to me, just as much as the article itself. How can I know what my commenters are thinking if they do not leave feedback or want to engage in further conversation on my blog. However, quality control is just as important. If I approve a spammer, what happens when one of my well known colleagues in the blog community come by and see my site littered with spam? They will become discouraged to comment because they are not sure if the same spammers will seek their site out and do the same. Or, they believe the blogger does not care about what comments their visitors leave.
So, what is your policy on comment moderation?
Hi,
I'm also dwelling around same dilemma. Can I rely upon the anti-spamming mechanism of IntenseDebate. It puts those comments that are too short or contain more links in a comment into spam folder.
Do you suggest me to remove comment moderation for reputed IntenseDebate members?
I would say, leave the comment moderation in effect. You will always have spammers. There is not one program or plugin out there that can prevent every spammer. It can be a daunting thought, but you should use your judgment on what should and should not be approved, and how your comment policy should be. If you choose a strict policy, some of your regular visitors might be annoyed. However, that is your decision.
As I just posted on that blog, I use comment moderation not only to catch spam, but to retain comments that are left by individuals who comment only to stir the pot or start drama. I'm all for comment moderation.
Definitely… I have had problems in the past, before my site focus change and I have had to remove problematic commenters. I still wonder why they would just come to your site Jenn to cause trouble…. it ticks me off. These people have no idea how the law is now focusing on cyber bullying…which is what flamers are.
You are definitely right. Quality comments are as important as good articles. Note that many of the anti -spam software systems are not so accurate and at some point manual moderation is needed.
Actually comments are important and help to know how well you are in your blog post and to some extent show you what the things your blog post are missing. Compare to others who put each incoming comments in moderation mode, i like your comment approval policy. Thanks Nile….
Hello Nile, I know how you feel and I understand your concerns. Maybe Andrea were referring to those sites (old site) that set their comments to be moderated first but then owners were all busy and never check their comments nor approved it. Moderating comments are important as long as it is being monitored regularly 🙂