Not much happens out of the blue. The snakes of lightning across one’s vision before a migraine, the same argument verbatim every few weeks before a break-up, the sudden dread when you know someone’s about to break unwanted news – signs, more often than not, are there in plain sight. I’ve been thinking a lot… Continue reading On the good side
Category: online comments
The empathy deficit
Recently, I’ve started giving James O’Brien’s show on LBC an occasional listen. I know I shouldn’t – it’s just another cosy nook in the liberal, left-wing echo chamber, really, let’s be honest. And I sometimes find myself wincing at his approach – he does like to verbally pummel his callers, even the ones who agree… Continue reading The empathy deficit
On outrage, Twitter and food-shaming
I still love Twitter. Every few months or so, there’ll be a rash of articles about how it’s haemorrhaging users and is dying a feeble, protracted death, in the manner of Beth from Little Women. And the criticisms are usually spot-on. Despite various tweaks and algorithm changes, it still lacks an “edit Tweet” function –… Continue reading On outrage, Twitter and food-shaming
Online comments – who are they good for?
On Sunday, I went to a Guardian Masterclass* for aspiring freelance journalists. It was a fantastic day run by industry professionals who were unbelievably positive and keen to share their knowledge. There was none of that “well, print journalism’s a sick, dying horse these days, so if I were you lot, I’d stick to basket-weaving… Continue reading Online comments – who are they good for?
Inbetween Girl 