The Non-Anonymous Mob

Published on Friday, March 26, 2010, by James Norton / Edit Post

Alex Salkever, writing on DailyFinance, proposes a novel solution to the Yelp blackmail fuss that's swirling around the courts and the Web: take away the anonymity of Yelp users.

Commenters would have to register with a system like Facebook Connect or Google Friend Connect: "Doing so would ensure, to a great degree, that commenters use their real identities and could be held accountable for their comments."

Shakedown artists and disgruntled ex-employees would have a far more difficult time working the system to their advantage, users would have to stand behind their opinions, and the discourse as a whole on Yelp would shift toward the constructive and positive, Salkever suggests. He brushes off the possible reduced volume of posting and the potential rise of sugar-coated reviews, which are both serious potential consequences of forcing commenters to use their real identities.

Salkever's getting to one of the core dilemmas of the Web: How best to moderate online forums and comment sections. Moderate too heavily or require elaborate registration, and you risk constricting conversation to a standstill. Create Wild West conditions (total anonymity and unrestricted free speech) and you get threads that go from constructive to acid-laced discussions of Obama's birth certificate in about three posts. There's a viable middle ground somewhere, and it's in part up to the big user-driven food communities like Yelp and Chowhound to figure out where it lies, and what the laws should be.

Image source: Flickr member LeNs'PHoTOs' under Creative Commons

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POST A COMMENT |4 Comments

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  • Interesting that you discuss anonymity. When I saw how many of my reviews were filtered, I thought, "What can I do to prove I'm real?" So I went through Yelp's FAQ's and... put up my picture, filled out the details of my profile, friended other Yelpers, commented on other reviews, etc. With no results. I can't help notice that while I have not written a negative review, and all of the...+READ

    Interesting that you discuss anonymity. When I saw how many of my reviews were filtered, I thought, "What can I do to prove I'm real?" So I went through Yelp's FAQ's and... put up my picture, filled out the details of my profile, friended other Yelpers, commented on other reviews, etc. With no results. I can't help notice that while I have not written a negative review, and all of the "unfiltered" reviewers posted a lot of negative reviews.

    I'm not sure if Yelp is actively extorting money, but they have created a situation that makes business owners pay them for help. Yelp filters reviews (they move "bad" reviews to a section where they are not part of your score). What's a bad review? Yelp won't say. The algorithm for filtering is very proprietary, and there is no recourse if you are filtered.

    The math behind the software may "unfiltered" you after a while, but there is no method of appeal or discussion. I've personally created 22 reviews (and every one of my reviews is filtered. If I'm doing something that's causing filtering, shouldn't Yelp help me to fix it? Instead, you are not told when you are filtered. Most reviewers are surprised when discover their filtered status. Even when you go to a business you've reviewed, you don't get told that you are in the filter. Instead, the first review you see is always your review. You need to know to go to the filter, sort the list to see that your review has been removed.

    I've looked at various businesses, and I see up to 2/3 of the reviews filtered. This certainly gets the attention of the business owner. When they contact Yelp (of when Yelp proactively contacts you) the conversation quickly moves to how their paid services can help you. If you follow their advice (including talking to every reviewer), your score probably will go up. No other review site that I can think of leverages user reviews like that to generate revenue.

    In my case I THINK that because all of my reviews are positive, I could look like a bot of some sort, assuming that Central Park, Moma, and the museum of natural history are paying for fake reviews. Yelp says tat the #1 reason they filter is because of "bots", yet they allow no form of communication to prove you are a real human being.-COLLAPSE

  • "Anonymity is crucial if people are to be expected to be upfront and honest" -raleighboy

    I'm frankly tired of comps/free dinners because they read my review and want me to change it to something favorable but I like to put my name on my thoughts; there must be some middle ground.

  • We've heard the stories of people *threatening* to sue bloggers, but has any of them every actually carried through? Has any blogger ever had to go through the legal process, let alone lost?

    Anyone can file a suit against anyone for anything -- I could file a suit against you (John Doe, aka "raleighboy") but that doesn't mean it's going to go anywhere. A meritorious suit on a speech issue...+READ

    We've heard the stories of people *threatening* to sue bloggers, but has any of them every actually carried through? Has any blogger ever had to go through the legal process, let alone lost?

    Anyone can file a suit against anyone for anything -- I could file a suit against you (John Doe, aka "raleighboy") but that doesn't mean it's going to go anywhere. A meritorious suit on a speech issue would have to be based on statements that could not be considered opinions, AND that are demonstrably factually wrong AND where the misstatements of fact are considered material AND that are deliberate and malicious, not just human error AND that have caused demonstrable damage. Furthermore, the burden is on the plaintiff to prove all those elements are present. Which is why in the US celebrities rarely sue tabloids: they have to prove that what the tabloid said is either not an opinion or is factually incorrect, or that if factually incorrect the publication knew or should have known it was factually incorrect, which often means providing documentation and evidence they cannot or would rather not provide.

    As for review sites, I'd rather have one review from a person I trust and whose tastes I'm familiar with (even if it means knowing that if the reviewer hates it I'll probably like it) than ten reviews from strangers, half of whom think it's great and half of whom think it sucks, which is why I stick with Chowhound.-COLLAPSE

  • We've all heard the stories of bloggers being sued for writing negative reviews. Anonymity is crucial if people are to be expected to be upfront and honest. False reviews mixed in surely aren't ideal but it is our duty as internet users to put our reviews out there as well. Diners have to be trusted to read more than just the first review on the page. If they don't, that's unfortunate, but thats...+READ

    We've all heard the stories of bloggers being sued for writing negative reviews. Anonymity is crucial if people are to be expected to be upfront and honest. False reviews mixed in surely aren't ideal but it is our duty as internet users to put our reviews out there as well. Diners have to be trusted to read more than just the first review on the page. If they don't, that's unfortunate, but thats how it is.-COLLAPSE