Weblog Tools Collection published an article which shed some light on comment ownership issue. It starts off the discussion by highlighting the issue of third party commenting systems, (for example, Haloscan which is very popular among *Blogspot users) - they generally do not allow the blog admin to edit comments posted due to the ongoing dispute over the ownership of published comment.
In this short post, I’ll be highlighting to you the basis of this issue as well as my take on who actaully owns the comment you’ve posted (like the one you’re going to write after reading this post - will it be yours, truly, or mine?)
*Photo is from Flickr, copyrighted by its owner.
Wordpress, where you can do anything with comments!
For self-hosted Wordpress blog administrators like me, there is generally no restriction or any ethical framework to adhere to when modifying posted comments. While I edit comments for clarity and to correct blatant grammar mistakes (if and ONLY if the comment is incomprehensible and incoherent), there are Wordpress administrator whose action of modifying comment crosses the border line of infringing one’s copyright. One can edit your comment to make it defamatory, derogatory, offensive, vulgar and etc, without the commentator’s permission.
Following the industry’s rules
Like what Astrorpof has commented,
Let’s look at a larger model of publishing than just blogging.
Who owns the blog? If the comments are submitted to the blog, then they are owned by the blog owner. If the commenter wants to own his own comments, then he writes something on his own site, and then leaves a comment (or trackback) linking to it.
I write a number of things for journals. I have written for encyclopedias. The contracts that I sign for my publications all state that the publisher owns them, not the author. Comments left on someone else’s site are similar.
Thus, the blog owner has the right to edit the comments as he/she pleases. BUT, just having the right to do something does not make it right to do. It would be morally wrong to alter a comment in a way that is not in keeping with the commenter’s meaning. You can correct spelling, remove profanity, add line breaks, or remove links to spammy sites. But, you should not change what the commenter is saying. It would be morally wrong to alter the comment in any other way than formatting, spelling, or bl***ing profanity. But, if the comment is going to be published on a web site, the web site owner needs to have control of what is on that web site. That’s how it works in the larger world of publishing that I am familiar with.
If we would adhere to the general guidelines in the publishing industry (think: newspapers, magazines and etc), when you have submitted your opinion to the published, you are granting them permission to use your work in any of their future publications and/or to modify your opinions for the sake of clarity (while retaining your original meaning).
What I think
I personally think that this should apply to the blogosphere too. We, the blog administrators, have rightful onwership over the comments, but at the same time, we are responsible for the comments too. Although we all agree that comments in blogs do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the blog author, we are still responsible to protect our readers from reading spammish-looking comments, those that contain an unacceptable amount of profanities, those are misleads and confuses readers, as well as those that are ethically or morally unacceptable (so judge every comment using your applicable ethical and moral framework).
If you would want to voice your opinions on someone’s blog post and yet retain your ownership, you can always write your views on your blog and then publish a trackback (by linking the post you’re discussing about). This allows you to be part of the discussion and yet still grant you full ownership of what you’ve said. And of course, what entails it is that you’re also accountable for your words!
What do you think?
Dear Readers, what’s your take on this issue?
11 responses to Your comments are mine… not?
Responses can be separated into comments and trackbacks
Comments »
June 19th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Just like editors for mainstream papers or webmasters of forums, bloggers certainly have and should enforce the authority and responsibility of censoring undesirable comments. That’s my stand.
While most online resources put up disclaimers, they are pretty much useless when law enforcement comes into the picture. Allowing defamatory or offensive comments to remain and be read by all, is just the sidekick of the person who authored the comments.
Copyright & ownership are small issues, the context and repercussions of certain comments are the one I will place utmost importance. If those who commented are so particular about these, why leave a comment in other’s blogs and not their own blog to retain ownership instead? It’s kicking up ruckus from a haysack.
Check out Ed’s last blog post: Obama House… and where’s yours?
June 21st, 2008 at 12:00 pm
I couldn’t agree more with you
being webmasters ourselves, I believe we are responsible for the content we expose our readers/visitors to. I will moderate or remove offensive comments, but if they’re personal attacks (on me, that is), I’ll be more than happy to leave them there to let others see how horribly childish some detractors are.
June 20th, 2008 at 2:43 am
I agree completely and actually have nothing else to add… hmm… well that’s never happened before.
June 20th, 2008 at 5:10 am
Comments should be moderated. The blog owner is responsible for the comments echoed on their blog. But then again, as long as its the in lieu of the post, why not? Unless comments are filled with crappy words or doesnt make sense, just like this one. LoL!
Check out NoktahHitam’s last blog post: My Definition of Sexy
June 21st, 2008 at 12:04 pm
Yep precisely. We’re given the right to moderate comments as of when necessary and so we’re responsible of keeping comments clean of vulgarities and spammish links.
No, your comment is insightful! Who says it’s crappy?
June 20th, 2008 at 11:59 pm
my thoughts on this topic:
I feel the reader should feel free to be able to post a comment on a blog without having to worry about it being censored in some type of way (unless for profanity, spam, comments that do not have anything to do with the post or really bad spelling) the content (the comment) created by that individual is technically theirs (unless stated otherwise in a comment policy)
on the other hand I also believe that the blog owner should have the right to control the content on their site (including comments) in a way which will most benefit them and not be harmful to them in any way
so for me it is kind of hard to decide who really has copyright ownership over comments
June 21st, 2008 at 12:13 pm
I also agree with you that we should not edit the comments of our readers/visitors whenever we like. Given the responsibility and ownership rights, we are also accountable for the protection of personal information submitted by our commentators. We should also respect the freedom of speech - do not modify comments just because they disagree with you or have different opinions on the same issue.
June 23rd, 2008 at 2:54 am
Hey Teddy! It’s been a long time since I’ve made a public appearance. I hope you and the media remember me. LOL. Okay– It’s really been a while. How’s it going?
I agree with you. I would only edit comments if there’s something seriously wrong about it, like grammar or content. 
Check out Grace’s last blog post: A Revamp, A Comeback!
June 23rd, 2008 at 5:17 am
I’d feel a bit lost if I had no control over my comments.
Check out Brandy’s last blog post: Violated
June 25th, 2008 at 5:19 am
I do think when using a medium such as wordpress, the commenter has to realise that they are evnturing on someone else’s domain. Therefore the owner should have rights over comments and be able to modify them especially when they contain inflammatory content. But I do also agree that just because someone posts something you disagree with, doesn’t give you the right to modify the comment- I have seen some webmasters do this and make it a point never to post on those sites!
Check out Nel’s last blog post: Oh, the joys of being a couch-potato!
June 25th, 2008 at 10:35 am
I think the owner of the blog should be able to regulate and delete what goes on their website, including comments.
I have known this ability to be abused. For example, an owner of a blog replaced what I typed with insulting text.
But, it’s a good thing overall.
As the owner of a personal website I don’t feel an obligation to “protect” readers from unsavory text. Parents/Guardians should do that for minors. Adults can click the “X”, and move on with their life.