Two way conversation or green ink brigade?

Many of those in favour of the new media point to the fact that it now allows journalists and readers to have a two way conversation.

Of course this was sort of possible in the old old days when you sent your letter to the editor.The ease of technology means now that it is simply a matter of tying on a keyboard,sometimes but not always having to register and hitting the return key.

The mere physical effort in writing a letter,putting a stamp on the envelope and walking to the post box,often meant that only the most dedicated made the effort and rage would be equally tempered by the amount of time it took to carry out the process.

Today outrage is instant and comments are not given the reflection of the writer that they once were.

I write this having read an article in the Sunday Herald (ht-Martin Stabe) by Tom Shields.Titled Journalists are no longer in charge of the asylum he writes

AS AN aged hack with attitude, I tend not to pay too much attention to this modern trend of newspapers inviting readers to give their views online. But I do scan the opinions expressed about my own articles.

and points out that

I am sure most of the posters (as they are called) on the Herald websites are in the tradition of the erudite, knowledgeable, insightful and witty letter-writing readers. It is just that some of the contributors to the electronic forums fall far below this standard.

Sadly,he says

many contributions on the message boards are reminiscent of those letters written in capital letters with green and purple ink. In the old days, journalists had the option of consigning these missives to the bin.
In the new age of instant communication, this appears not to be a choice. The journalists are no longer in charge of the asylum