[...] have been hybrids, CNN’s iReport, HuffPo’s Off the Bus, and recently Gawker’s new way of sharing tips, but the editor, in each of these situations, still takes incredible control. Despite ample [...]

[...] Got a #tip? Gawker Media opens tag pages to masses, expecting “chaos” [Nieman Journalism Lab] Gawker Media is unveiling an innovative and unruly twist on traditional reader forums this morning. The new feature, part of an otherwise modest redesign across the company’s nine blogs, could transform tag pages, typically little more than archives of old posts, into commenter free-for-alls and transparent tip lines. [...]

Say this much for the guy: at least he doesn’t pussyfoot around trying to “bit by little bit lower standards where they are important.” No coaxing along flash over substance a tiny bit, this one. Just cuts straight to chaos and floodgates. You’ve gotta hand it to him.

What, exactly, he ought to be handed… who can say. Probably not phrases like “pure theory of news” or “the next Joseph Pulitzer,” though.

What a shocker, btw, the ‘dark’ facebook concept. This from the kid who reportedly hacked into Harvard servers, copied student photos without permission, and set up a site for visitors to vote on his unconsenting classmates’ attractiveness.

(“Perhaps Harvard will squelch it for legal reasons without realizing its value as a venture… But one thing is certain, and it’s that I’m a jerk for making this site. Oh well. Someone had to do it” http://www.02138mag.com/magazine/article/1724.html)

[...] Full story at this link… [...]

And, Ian, thanks for the input from a user. (I’m not much of a Gawker Media commenter myself.) I do think there’s a tension between instituting a “class system” in the comments and expecting “chaos” with this new thing. Denton explains how he thinks they square when he says, “We needed the class system in place before we opened the floodgates.” But as always, users will determine if that’s valid. —Zach