Beginning Saturday, October 22, WPR will no longer provide space for online comments on web articles at wpr.org and ttbook.org. Audiences will still be able to offer comments on WPR’s content via our Facebook accounts, our Audience Services email and phone, and during call-in talk show programs. We know that some will welcome this news and that others will be disappointed. Ending web article comments was not an easy decision to make and numerous factors contributed to it.
Civil discourse and a respect for different points of view are central to our mission. We believe that understanding starts with curiosity, both about one’s own beliefs and about those who might disagree with or challenge them. Despite WPR’s social media guidelines and investments in online moderation, personal attacks, hate speech and trolling were far too common in the wpr.org comments section. Unfortunately, the comments section of wpr.org no longer reflected the open, diverse and respectful community space that WPR envisioned when it was launched more than 8 years ago.
Ending comments on articles will allow us to focus additional attention on social media to connect with audiences - including WPR’s accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Many of our peers in public media share our interest in online engagement and most of them are using these platforms instead of web comments. Compared to Disqus, WPR’s commenting software, the popularity of these platforms make it easier to participate and offer more ways for users to engage with the content and one another.
WPR has reporters based in 8 bureaus around the state, including Milwaukee, Green Bay, Wausau, Superior, Madison, Eau Claire, La Crosse and the State Capitol Building - connecting with and telling the stories of Wisconsin is in our DNA. Although comments on our web articles have ended, our interest in hearing from you has not. Whether you want to suggest a story idea, join a broadcast conversation or comment on our work, here are some options:
- If you are interested in sharing your thoughts on the content you see at wpr.org, we encourage you to contact us at listener@wpr.org, by phone at 800-747-7444.
- If you want to call in during a live Wisconsin talk-show program, call 800-642-1234.
- On WPR’s Facebook page, you can “like,” “dislike,” comment, share content and more. Follow us at https://www.facebook.com/wisconsinpublicradio. You can follow “To the Best of Our Knowledge” here: https://www.facebook.com/tothebestofourknowledge/
- Through WPR’s award-winning WHYsconsin initiative, anyone can submit a question and receive a response from our producers.