Ah, the Internet. Never before have so many been able to share so widely and instantaneously every thought and opinion no matter how uninformed, factually inaccurate, or just plain out prejudiced. In the old days, it took some effort to share one’s ignorance with the world.  You had to speak up at a meeting or mail a letter to the editor.

Not anymore. Now readers of online news articles can leave their immediate reactions in the popular “Comments” section that routinely follows articles.  These comments often present a dilemma to the subject of the news story. Say, for example, your business is featured in a story on an issue of controversy.  It would not be surprising to see a long string of comments questioning your firm’s motives or integrity, your CEO’s intelligence and salary, and any number of suggestions that you just do everyone a favor and go out of business.

Should you respond to these online comments?  In most cases, we advise clients not to.  Here’s why:

•  Regardless of how numerous the comments might be, often times they are generated by a very small number of people arguing amongst themselves.  To that extent, comments are not a true representation of public sentiment.  Next time you see a lot of comments, try counting the actual number of individuals involved.  
• Online comments are not a conversation or a debate, but are more like a cacophony of multiple conversations all going on at once.  Imagine going to a party and trying to follow--and get involved in--every conversation in the room simultaneously.  You get the idea.
• No matter how cogent your posted response, someone else will always have the last word and they will probably accuse you—representing the business—of Big Brotherism for trying to influence and suppress what “real” people are saying.  This has happened to me personally.

While engaging in the Comments section has little upside, monitoring online comments and thinking strategically about a response can be valuable.  For one thing, you may identify potential issues or inaccuracies that should be addressed.  You just need to address them in a way that is more controlled, best represents your key messages, and is consistent with your overall communications plan. 

Meanwhile, some online editions of newspapers are beginning to require posters to include their actual names on posts, as a way of discouraging the anonymous snarkiness that predominates.  It remains to be seen if this requirement will make anyone think twice before sharing.  Let’s hope so.