Quote Originally Posted by Loki View Post
I don't understand your point. The general reader of the Huffington Post is going to be more informed and less likely to be a lunatic than the general reader/listener of Youtube and 4chan. Heck, as much as I don't like the comments on the story I posted, they're miles above anything you'll see from youtube, 4chan, or Yahoo posters.
You understand how this is circular right? youtubers/4channers are stupid because they leave stupid comments, they leave stupid comments because they are stupid users
The internet, by large, is border free. Someone isn't only a 4chan user, or a youtube user, or a HuffingtonPost user. They can be all, or they can be none (I use all of them). The context of the information means nothing, its the anonymous group think that you are getting hung up on. Being anonymous removes a lot of social and cultural boundaries, but the group think is a problem too. You should look into studies that show how comments vary widely based on if the commenter is made aware of previous comments, even if they are completely fabricated or falsely representing the information.