Bonding Over Commentary on Carrots

Today was a busy day for the "Well" blog author as she published four posts on very different subjects. The best part about her diversity though is that each provides a different look at the comments section in action. Writing about food (of course), diabetes, and a baby advice book, Parker-Pope helps us see and better understand the readers who comment and their discourse.

As of 6:15 p.m. today, the food posts combined had 11 comments, baby advice had none while diabetes had 26. Yes, 26! Although the subject of food can lead to much discussion, especially among food lovers, obviously diabetes, especially in the framework of cost and health insurance, is much more controversial, lending itself to discourse.

Comments Section Characteristics:

• People refer to one another by number or name when disagreeing with each other.
• People do not use a filter; they say whatever they think and feel (and obviously there is no editor--you'll see many spelling and grammar mistakes).  
• Even though someone has already made their point earlier in comments, they still feel the need to say the same thing
• People have no problem being rude or condescending 

Karen Christian was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes 10 years ago.
The article, "Reducing the Cost of Care for Type 2 Diabetes" talks
about her situation.

Adding Your Two Cents
The first question I always ask myself when I read the comments section of a blog is "why do readers make comments?" What do readers hope to achieve?

The nature of the blog in which the writer has no editor may also apply to the comments section. Readers comment, because they can.

On the Internet, they can speak freely without having to be accountable. Every person who comments wants to add his or her two cents.

To go further, I think that they believe that their advice or opinion might make a difference or change someone else's opinion or behavior. Maybe their opinion will outweigh someone else's bad advice.

Carrot recipes for health on today's "Well" blog.

Bonding over Carrots
Do comments make a difference? Yes, maybe in some cases they make a difference in that realm or small corner of the Internet.

And not all comments are negative and cynical. It really depends on the subject, the blog' tone and the readers. The comments section is also a great space to have a positive discussion, to gain additional information or to learn more.

In cases where the blog post's author gets involved, the comments section can help the reader better understand the subject or point of view. It can also enhance the subject matter.

For instance, in Parker-Pope's post about cooking carrots, readers added their own experiences, web sites and recipes which are helpful to the others who posted comments as well as the blogs' readers.

The people commenting on the carrot post are giving personal experiences, sharing a piece of themselves, in a sense, bonding over fond memories and delicious food. This space becomes more than just a blog post or commenting space, but a community where people from all over the country, maybe the world are finding common bonds on the smallest of things. Who knew carrots or comments could be so moving?