As you’ve probably noticed, there is a box at the bottom of every post on Doha News giving you the opportunity to leave a comment or join in a discussion. 

We’ve been seeing an increasing number of comments on our stories. Some are amazingly erudite and insightful, while others are downright insulting and offensive.

We are not able to keep up with them all, but in the interest of promoting discourse here, we’re not about to turn off comments or require them to be pre-moderated.

Instead, we’re asking for your help.

Firstly, we’ve laid out some new guidelines that we’re asking everyone to accept and follow. The gist of it is, when commenting, please be respectful, don’t attack other commenters and stick to the subject of the post. (We’ve kept comments open on the policy, so you can weigh in on those guidelines).

Secondly, please help us moderate the comments. You have the ability to vote up comments you like and vote down ones you don’t.

If you find something factually inaccurate, by all means respond and offer a measured perspective. And if you come across a comment that evidently crosses the line, please click the button “flag as inappropriate” to notify us about it. If the egregiously offensive comment persists, send us an email.

But remember, Qatar is a diverse country, and you’ll likely disagree with many of the views expressed here. So please, be tolerant.

Credit: Graphic by John Sutton

Any thoughts or feedback?