Comments will be allowed again... but only for those who are registered

Now that The Bristol Press has finally limited comments on its website to those who have registered, I'm going to reopen comments on this site -- but only to those who bother to register with Google or Open ID. You won't be able to make totally anonymous comments anymore and I will ban an user who flagrantly violates obvious standards of decency.The general rule for comments is this: be civil.
Copyright 2011. All rights reserved. Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

To my anonymous friends

There's something uniquely funny about anonymous posters calling me a coward. After all, my name is on my stories. My phone number is public. My email address is, well, just over there to the right. Anyone is welcome to contact me.
And yet.
This story about Robert Mosback's on-duty crash in June, where records show he was intoxicated, appears to be bringing out the worst in some faceless accusers.
One questioned if I'm in love with Mosback since I've written about the case extensively. "I wonder if Collins is the giver or the receiver," he speculated.
That's such a nice thing to say that I'm simply shocked that whoever posted it declined to put his name to his words.
Another person, or maybe the same guy, claims I have "nothing positive to write" and that the Press should "get a new reporter."
Whether the Press should find a replacement for me or not I leave to my bosses. I'm sure there are days they would agree.
The reality is that I don't set out to write anything positive or negative. I just head into every day aiming to tell the news as best I can. The hardest part of it is trying to figure out how to get as much done as I can when there's so very much more that could be written (while simultaneously trying to keep an editor who often has different priorities at least vaguely content).
I don't really mind having abuse heaped upon me along the way. A thick skin is the best tool a reporter can have, after all. But I liked the old days when I knew who was gunning for me (so, politicians, I do sympathize with your similar complaints about the web).
What I do know for sure, though, is that I'm going to keep writing every day until somebody sends me packing --- or I wise up and find an occupation that actually pays a living wage.
Gripe all you like, but I've got a job to do.
*****
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved. Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Fight back against anonymous slurs

For a long time, I've listened to politicians and other community leaders gripe about the idiocy of many of the anonymous comments that appear on this blog and at the end of news stories on the Press website.

The comments, which often sound like they were written by illiterates, tend to recast everything written on this blog (and others) and in the paper in the most negative possible light. They grab hold of something in a story and race along with it to some incredible conclusions.

Take, for instance, the piece that reporter Jackie Majerus wrote for today's paper in which developer Don Monti gives a glimpse of his timeline and plans for the former mall property downtown. It's a solid story with some insight into the deal that may remain secret at least until Monday's Bristol Downtown Development Corp. meeting. (If anyone who has a copy wants to send it my way, we can hasten the end of the secrecy.)

But what gets me is that the comments to Majerus' story are mostly outlandish nonsense. They're busy trashing the idea of a boutique hotel downtown, apparently oblivious to the reality that the hotel would be part of a gigantic redevelopment of the site. It wouldn't cater to the bums on Summer Street. It would cater to people who don't go downtown now. And if the project doesn't get them downtown, there won't be a hotel. That's just common sense, folks - something entirely lacking in most of the comments.

My concern, though, is that the people in Bristol who know better -- city officials, chamber leaders, business barons and so on -- just read this drivel, shake their heads and move on. They need to understand that the future is being shaped right now. They need to engage the doubters and make their case for a different outlook.

I'm not saying the doubters are wrong. The backers of the project can sound pollyannish all too frequently. But when the only debate is a one-sided slam from anonymous pinheads, people who don't understand what they read and don't grasp the obvious, the skewed conversation online quickly becomes the common wisdom.

The real stupidity is to leave the field entirely to people who can't spell, don't identify themselves and don't see a future for Bristol. Those who think otherwise had better suit up and play the damn game. You can't win if you're only on the sidelines griping.

*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved. Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Interesting thing to note about the blog

It's fascinating to me that the comments on my blog entries are far, far more enlightening and much less angry when they're made on my Facebook page rather than directly on the blog.
For those who don't know, I have a feed for this blog running on my wall on Facebook, where it gets mixed in with status updates, new 'friends,' and such. It's possible for people to make comments on the Facebook wall.
With growing frequency, they do, most all of them related to blog entries. What makes the comments better, I'm sure, is that all of them -- every single one of them -- is made by someone whose identity is clear. Heck, most of the time there's even a tiny picture of the person.
I say this in part as a mere observation. But I also invite anyone who'd like to be a Facebook friend and check out how that works. It may be better for some of you.
You can find me on Facebook by searching for "Steve Majerus-Collins." And while you're there, become a Fan of Youth Journalism International.
*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com