I have fond memories of exploring the comment section of the manliness blog The Art of Manliness; sometimes the comment section was more fun than the article itself!
The comment section built a little community around the website.
Then the blog owner took down the comment section and told us to “step into the arena” by leaving blog comments on Facebook.
I hated Facebook as did many other men, so the community around the website was lost and Art of Manliness has never been the same since. Turning comments back on wouldn’t help at this point either. The community is lost.
Yes, I still don’t pine for the good old days of active comment sections.
Where Did All The Blog Comments Go?
They went to social media, that’s where.
X, Instagram, Reddit, etc. is where the comment section is these days, for better or for ill.
There are several reasons for the change in user behavior and the corresponding migration:
Spam Killed The Comment Section
I’ve been in the blogging game a little while now, and let me tell you, even in an incredibly minor, insignificant blog the spam commenting is utterly out-of-control. Gambling spam comments are ridiculous at the moment. In the past it used to be viagra. And as alway…the four-letter P word (don’t wanna spell it out and risk a Google penalty). You feel filthy just wading through the junk looking for legitimate comments. This has led many bloggers and blogs, such as Art of Manliness, to simply turn off the comments and direct everybody to fight about the article on social media.
Dum Dums Also Killed The Comment Section:
Commenter 1: “Thanks Blogger, I enjoyed reading this article about drinking water!”
Commenter 2: “Oh you like WATER??? Know who else liked WATER??? Yeah, HITLER liked water. Why do you admire HITLER you FASCIST!!!!”
Blogger: “Hey let’s chill, nobody is admiring Hitler.”
Commenter 2: “Oh look the blogger is a HITLER APOLOGIST. Of course he is! Screenshotted and posted to twitter, pig!”
Bloggers got tired moderating the dum dums and sent them to X so the dum dums can fight with the other dum dums.
Comment Form Friction
It’s easier to shoot off a comment on X or Reddit than it is to fill out the required comment form. (But at least I let you link to your blog in my comment forms!)
Commenter Incentive
Now with the ability to garner payouts from views on social media, there is hardly any incentive to leave a thoughtful comment on a blog.
Instead, the incentive is to rage bait other people with social media posts in the hope it will go viral and make rage money, baby!
Bottom line is behavior has changed and people, if they comment anywhere, are unlikely to comment on blogs, which makes me sad.
I also think the comment ghost town also invites more ghosts.
People are more willing to engage in a lively comment section and ghost an empty comment section.
What’s A Blogger Supposed To Do About A Non-Existent Comment Section?
Well, we often talk about non-local blogging.
We talk about expanding the definition of your blog to include third party platforms.
So, in a way, social media channels are a part of your comment section.
But…
That feels kind of like a cop out, doesn’t it?
First, I need to accept blogs with active comment sections are the exception and not the rule.
Second, I need to remember somebody famous (Elvis Presley, I think) said, “Be the change you wish to be.”
What does that mean in terms of blogging comment sections?
It means if I desire comments in blog comment sections, I should start leaving them.
So, I’m making a commitment to leave 5 comments throughout 5 days each week. I’m calling it the C-5/5 Challenge.
I’m under no delusion I will single-handedly revive the blog comment section to 2005 levels, but perhaps I can begin the restoration of a lost art form? Maybe I can bring joy to other bloggers by leaving legitimate comments from a reader?
Regardless, I’m going to give it a shot!
And you, dear reader and blogger, I challenge you to take on the C-5/5 Challenge for at least 30 days, it’s not a very big commitment, you know.
I know you are already reading a lot of blog articles. I’m just asking you leave a comment for the next 30 days after finishing the read.
It doesn’t even have to be my blog you grace your comments with. It can be other blogs, whatever strikes your fancy! I’m just in the business of helping to usher in a New Golden Age Of Blogging. I hope you are along for the ride, dear friend!
And we can start by leaving behind some well-deserved comments on blogs! And, of course, link back to your blog with each comment you leave (most comment forms allow you to do this!. It’s a double win! Leave a comment, leave a breadcrumb to bring others back to your blog!
A Few Notes
- I’m not throwing any shade at The Art Of Manliness; it’s one of my favorite blogs. One of the OGs still chugging along. If anything in this article comes across as me throwing shade, it’s merely because I’m jealous of what The Art Of Manliness has achieved.
- It made more sense to move the comment section to Facebook back in the day, FYI. Back then nobody on Facebook could snipe from behind an anonymous handle, you were listed as your Christian name because the only way to get a Facebook account was via your college email, which was always firstname.lastname@yourschool.edu.
- An important lesson to learn from The Art Of Manliness is a ruthless commitment to consistency. I don’t believe I’ve seen a blog that has been around 10+ years be so disciplined in consistency in publishing new articles. It’s obviously part of the reason the blog is massively successful