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New York Times

No matter what horrible things I say about the New York Times, honestly, it’s because I love them. No other print newspaper has come close to providing as much interesting “New Media” web content as the Times. Today, it seems, they are running a test to take the next big step in bringing people back into print media.

Silicon Alley Insider has managed to find a screenshot that seems to prove that the New York Times are testing out reader comments on the front page, above the fold. This move is unprecedented for an traditional print publications that are much more likely to squirrel away comments or leave them out all together.

The Times They Are A’Changin

When I went to check it out, it wasn’t coming up. Which leads me to believe that they are either randomly testing the system out or trying it in specific markets to see how it goes over with users.

Despite the fact that it opens up a world of problems if they don’t keep spammers in check, I believe the idea of allowing readers voice to have some weight in a publication this size is a move in the right direction. The paradigm of journalism as a one way conversation may not be dead, but it’s beginning to show signs of age. This is a bold move on the part of the times, and makes me even more interested in understanding what the rest of their web strategy might be.

It’s entirely possible that this experiment will fail and we will never see user comments up front and center. Then again, if the New York Times is willing to try this that means that they may just understand the need for something like this in the future. We will just have to wait and see how this pans out and hope that they attach an extra strength spam filter but otherwise it should be an interesting way new way to explore the news.

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