The Importance of Civility and Transparency on Patch

Discussions that have been ongoing on Forest Hills-Regent Square Patch are causing me concern because of the tone of some of the posts and the anonymity of posters across the board.

Patch is dedicated to journalistic integrity. We want our stories to be fair, unbiased and ethical. We also are dedicated to encouraging public discourse on the issues of the day. Indeed, we want lively, informed discussions and we encourage our readers to post comments.

But we want the discourse to be civil—and we want you to identify yourselves with your first and last names to maintain transparency and fairness on every level of the site.

This issue is clearly marked in our terms of service. While I have kindly asked many people to reveal their full names in the past, I will now be deleting comments from users who are not fully identified. This is only fair to those who state their full names while expressing their opinions in a respectful manner.

Communities thrive when people care about each other, and as such, Patch expects all of its users to be respectful of others. We encourage users of the site to treat others the way they want to be treated.

When you register for Patch, you agree to our terms of service that state the following:

“Patch believes in transparency, and we ask that all your registration information be truthful. You may not use any aliases or other means to mask your true identity.”

If you are posting anonymously, please change your information to accurately reflect who you are. Delivering news digitally is an evolving process—we are learning as we go along in this technological age.

If you have questions or concerns, please email me at stephanie.rex@patch.com.