Controlling, Filtering and Moderating Comments in WordPress
Many bloggers and website owners choose the WordPress platform for their blog or website. The WordPress software is attractive as it allows readers to leave feedback or post comments. All comments bring the discussions alive and make them interactive and dynamic. However, when a comment contains spam, the discussion turns sour and is less enjoyable for others. Realizing the importance of controlling, moderating and filtering readers’ comments, WordPress includes specific features to combat and control unwanted comments. One of the features is called Comment Moderation. It allows the blog owner or administrator to place comments on queue, preventing them from being automatically displayed without consent.
By default, the moderation feature will hold a comment containing two hyperlinks for the administrator to manually approve. After review, the comment can be displayed in full as originally submitted, be edited or deleted. Often, spammers will target blogs to spread links to their websites. They want readers to click on these links. For these types of spammers, they operate on the belief that the more links they can post, the higher their sites will be ranked in the search results.
Other than combating comment spam, this feature also allows administrators to filter the comment. For instance, if the comment includes inappropriate words or are insulting to the blog owner or other posters, the administrator can decide to delete it entirely or edit it before displaying.
In order to prevent unwanted comments from entering the blog, administrators can manage comments from their Dashboard. First, they need to log into their WordPress account. After logged in, they will see the Dashboard. Here, they can click on the Settings located at the left side bar. This will bring them to the Discussion Settings page. In this page, all the features to manage and control comments are shown.
Scroll down to the Comment Moderation section. Here, administrators can control which types of comments to hold for moderation. They can set the comments into queue if it contains multiple links. Many spammers are getting smart as they will add one or two links in their comment. Thus, administrators can change the default number of permitted links. This option can be strengthened by completing the Comment Blacklist section. For instance, the administrator can blacklist comments that contain an email address, URL or a name. However, some legitimate comments might contain one or two spam words. When choosing this option, administrators risk deleting a comment that may be beneficial to the discussion. Thus, this section should be used with care.
The Comment Moderation feature is highly functional in controlling unwanted comments from being posted. Choosing this feature helps the administrator to personally moderate and evaluate comments before displaying them. Although it takes time to moderate comments, and it may slow the interaction process, the administrator is able to manage all comments for compliance with their settings. By moderating comments and stopping spam from displaying, a blogger’s reputation will increase. A blog that is free of useless and irrelevant comments will be perceived as well managed. Readers will stay longer to read the blog and be eager to submit positive comments.
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