WHAT I THINK ABOUT THE STUPID STUFF GOING ON IN THE WORLD
A while ago, Yahoo removed a feature on their site which allowed people to comment at the end of an article. The comments, while sometimes interesting, were more often than not racist rants against various groups. Although there were a few wise or thoughtful comments, the majority of the comments were simply people’s opinions of others. Sometimes the comments were not even related to the story. After removing the comment feature, those of us who like to read the articles were able to do so without the onslaught of ignorance often posted at the end of each story.
Recently, Yahoo decided to add the comment section back. What happened after that? The racist trolls made their way back to the comment area and we are exactly where we were before. I am not sure what prompted Yahoo to bring these comments back, but I sure wish they would take them away again. Of course I could not use Yahoo and use Google News only, but I like the way that Yahoo organizes their news. Why should I have to be assaulted every time I read an article just because I scroll down?
I wish that Yahoo would roll the comments up automatically so that you have to click to read the comments. That way, I won’t have to be assaulted if I decide to scroll down while reading an article and all of the racist, ignorant people will also have the ability to offer their comments on various subjects. If you have never been to Yahoo to read the news, then I applaud you. Here are a few examples of the fine people that inhabit the Yahoo comment section. Scroll to the bottom of the article.
Article 1 - U.S. blacks, Hispanics losing more sleep over worries
Article 2 - Mo’Nique is 5th black woman to win acting Oscar
What is wrong with the world? What is wrong with us? I try to believe in the greater good in people, but maybe it isn’t there. I’m so sick of this. Being forced to see this type of BS every time I scroll down to read things at the bottom of the article is just very stupid. Yahoo, please change this crap!
UPDATE: 7/11/2011
YAHOO, INTERESTINGLY ENOUGH, HAS SINCE REMOVED THE ARTICLES I LINKED TO ABOVE. I STARTED TO DELETE THE LINKS, BUT I FOUND IT INCREDIBLY INTERESTING. IN FACT, YAHOO HAS REMOVED MANY ARTICLES THAT REFERENCE RACE! WOW! THERE ARE STILL RACIST POSTERS, BUT IT LOOKS LIKE YAHOO IS TRYING TO CLEAN THINGS UP!
LOOKS LIKE THEY STILL HAVE A WAYS TO GO. CHECK OUT THE FOLLOWING.
http://news.yahoo.com/ex-cop-says-helped-cover-katrina-shootings-181631947.html
LadyDi
November 14th, 2010 at 11:11 pm
Dear Ms.,
I’ve complained to Yahoo! before about their racist comment sections, and I’ve complained to them again today.
Thank you for your intelligent and most thoughtful letter.
LadyDi
Ms. Very Stupid
November 16th, 2010 at 4:09 am
Well LadyDi, lets hope that Yahoo starts to listen. We can’t possibly be the only ones to find their comment area offensive.
Autumn
November 25th, 2010 at 8:34 am
the Yahoo! comments sections are absolutely repulsive… full of raw bigotry and hate. How do you complain to Yahoo?
Ms. Very Stupid
November 26th, 2010 at 11:02 am
Well Autumn, you have to actually report an individual comment in order to complain. I consider their comments to be absolutely horrible and I’m so surprised that they have not addressed this. We should have the right to say what we want, but we should also have the right to read the article without being assaulted when we scroll to the bottom!
Gato
December 3rd, 2010 at 11:04 am
Oh man, I hear you! I’m Hispanic, and whenever I read the Yahoo comments I end up angry and depressed at the state of things. Worse, I live in Mexico, so it’s not like I need -more- reasons to be depressed. I’ve been working on an essay for my college class, and took a break to read the news. After seeing the racist comments, I wondered if I was the only one who was revolted by such nonsense, and to my delight your blog showed up.
I, too, report as many racist comments as I can, but Yahoo does not disclose what it does to the comments, if anything. I like your idea of rolling the comments back, it’s incredible a company keeps turning a blind eye to the blatant hate and racism thriving in the comments they host.
Keep on rockin!
Ms. Very Stupid
December 7th, 2010 at 12:30 am
@Gato you aren’t alone. If you live in Mexico, I’m SURE that you see more than you ever wanted to see when you read Yahoo comments. Don’t think that all Americans are like that. I’m surprised that Yahoo allows this. Yahoo’s comments section is absolutely horrible and I just wish that they would automatically roll up the comments so that we don’t have to see them. The news format is good, which is why I continue to read it, but the other people on that site just make you want to cringe! Good luck to you!
Dude
January 20th, 2011 at 1:29 pm
I believe in free speech, even if it’s racist. That’s why Yahoo! News should have a feature in the Yahoo! personal settings that allows users to hide comments. It’s no wonder the company’s lousy profits are deteriorating further by the day. I don’t see how they’ll remain independent or in business for long.
@Dude
March 3rd, 2011 at 11:16 am
“I believe in free speech, even if it’s racist.” Yeah except for the part that its used to only anger people all around the world. Have you read the comments on every criteria possible? What I hate more is that they name themselves after a group of people and attempt to bash other groups, to start trouble. Free speech? more like trouble makers.
VSamuels
May 2nd, 2011 at 3:09 pm
The perfunctory “free speech” nonsense, is just a cover for those who want to be able to openly be overt racists. I say, if you want free speech, then subject yourself to the type of ’sunshine’ where other posters can identify who you are; rather than coming on to Yahoo and making up some weird name, and ranting hate and stupidity. The racist on Yahoo, are just one step removed from the cowards in the KKK, who were more than willing to kill, maim and injure; just as long as they could keep their puny faces hidden by bed sheets.
Sunlight heals alot of problems, and Yahoo ought to examine a way to create more transparency; which will do a lot to rid their forums of these anonymous racist posters.
Ms. Very Stupid
May 14th, 2011 at 11:02 am
@VSamuels you are so correct. If you look at the comments on People.com you see an EXACT example of what you are talking about. Once they changed to using Facebook to leave comments, the comments INSTANTLY reflected better spelling, little to no racism and less horrible rants.
JadeSeeker
May 18th, 2011 at 3:10 pm
Yahoo News has one of the most bigot supporting users I’ve ever seen on the Internet. I dare you speak well behalf of a Mexican or a Muslim. You will be bombarded by hateful rants of Yahoo users who claim to be patriotic. I hope Yahoo falls and crumbles down. No wonder why some of their articles always has some racist tones in them. I mean for god sakes, they don’t even have an Arabic/Russian/Persian section for Yahoo Answers, in which is a heck-of-a-lot more populated than Quebec or Singapore users. WTH Yahoo?? Stop being so racist. Stop upvoting racist comments. Stop it with the ridiculous racist article titles. God I hope you and all your racist users rot down, Yahoo!
Rachel
May 31st, 2011 at 2:42 am
I believe in free speech, but I draw the line at the abundance of hate speech all over yahoo. It’s not just yahoo news comments, it’s yahoo answers too, the other cultures and grouos section is foul and I am shocked no one has done anything about this. The comments area is full of nasty racist cowardly trolls who attack blacks, hispanics, asians, and muslims mercilessly, I am not easily offended and I have to say the comments on yahoo are sickening. It’s like they don’t care that their site is full of hateful racist trolls, and is quickly turning into a joke.
Matthew
June 23rd, 2011 at 11:21 am
Yahoo is filled with trashy comments always thumb downing blacks and hispanics, trash talking all non white races!
LG
June 23rd, 2011 at 7:55 pm
I am glad I am not the only one who has noticed this. Even when an article has nothing to do about race, sex, or politics, you can bet someone will weave in such a comment regardless. To add insult to injury, some of the comments are so racist, it is almost as if some people thinking capability has maxed out on the eight grade (or even third grade). For instance, there is a current article posted about how the births of all minorities combined have surpassed that of Caucasians. If you read the comment section, you would swear up and down that all (and only) minorities pop out babies, collect welfare, and do not pay any federal, state, or payroll taxes. So yes, yahoo has pretty much been a cesspool for racist rants. I should probably change my email address and join Google. However, I am kind of vested in my email address at this point .
Kacey
June 25th, 2011 at 11:12 am
I am glad I am not the only one who feels this is a serious problem. I cannot stand to read Yahoo! News because of the comments at the bottom. I stopped going to their news section for a long time and was reminded why just a few minutes ago. Nothing but hatred towards minorities and Yahoo! fails to monitor these comments. They should make it like other news articles I read online; make it to where you have to push a button to load up the comments. I do not care to read racism when I’m finished with a story. I’m like LG, I would like to stop supporting Yahoo! altogether until they start respecting all users by either monitoring and removing offensive comments, or make it to where a person has to push a certain button to make the comments show. Their e-mail system is wonderful, but everything else (search engines, homepage) are usually by Google because I cannot stand that Yahoo! is this insensitive to the trolling that occurs on their websites. If Google ever makes their e-mail service the same as or better than Yahoo! then I am switching over.
brandi earley
June 29th, 2011 at 9:17 am
Omg! my thoughts exactly. My mom is writing them a long letter and sending it to the proper authorities. We usually are not bothered by things of this manner but this is just ridiculous. I can read an article without getting ticked off. I work with racists everyday, they do not bother me. But I do not want to hear your thoughts an empty opinions not related to the subject. You guys are so right!
Ms. Very Stupid
June 30th, 2011 at 9:30 pm
Yes! I am SO GLAD to see that there are others who feel the same way that I do. Yahoo should be ashamed, but I don’t believe they are!
Niden div. 187
July 10th, 2011 at 1:48 pm
yahoo caters to the lowest common denominator of americans-low end low income narrow minded white bigots who vent their anger and frustration of being unemployed and or/low income at whatever minority group happens to be in their small minds at the particular moment
if the comments on yahoo news are any indicator of the psyche of usa as a nation, then we’re headed for the gutter
Ms. Very Stupid
July 11th, 2011 at 11:38 am
@Niden you are absolutely correct! It is so unfortunate. Yahoo comments make me cringe every time I see them. It has gotten to the point that I don’t even scroll down beyond the very end of the screen!
Niden div. 187
July 12th, 2011 at 7:20 pm
alotta those folks are hard working people who are simply mis-guided by the brainwashing of the far right wing of the republican party
the far right reactionary elite have convinced these lower income working class individuals to vote against their own self-interest by over-emphasizing utter nonsense like racial quotas, religion in schools and the like
liberals need to reach out to them by educating them about this mindwashing and not use the verbal digression that I ignorantly and immaturely succumbed to in my previous post
Waqar Ahmed
July 12th, 2011 at 10:48 pm
Finally I see im not the only one who see’s this ocean of racism and hate. Im in pakistan, and by reading the yahoo comments I get the picture that almost all Americans and White people are racist and narrow minded. I know thats not true. I have lived in Australia before, and its a country of very tolerant and good people.
But the Yahoo comments depress me because of the hate they generate against Muslims, jews, Mexicans, Chinese and etc.. Any article which has even only one word “God” will end up Athiesm/Christian debate. Any which has word “China” or “India” will end up “F*** them, let the jobs stay here in US”. And by and large, all yahoo commenters seem to hate Muslims and mexicans.. Where has the tolerance gone?
Niden div. 187
July 14th, 2011 at 12:34 pm
well waqar ahmed-I must say its refreshing to see a pakistani point out that many western (white) people are not racist bigots, and that you are equally upset at the defamation of jews and indians as well
goes to shpw that the stereotypes created by the biased american media about pakistan are not true and that not all pakistanis are what the racist american media claim them to be
bianca cox
July 22nd, 2011 at 2:20 am
Yeah its getting really ridiculous! We should contact Yahoo: Yahoo! Inc.
701 First Avenue
Sunnyvale, CA 94089
Tel: (408) 349-3300
Fax: (408) 349-3301
And join me Bianca YahoostoppromotingRacism Cox on Facebook. Its a new page but im working on it.. : )
Daniel F
July 27th, 2011 at 11:13 am
Hi all!
I love this blog! I feel incredibly harrassed whenever I read the yahoo comments and I have always wondered why does yahoo allow it. But after doing some research I think the main source of the problem is actually the Associated Press not necessarily yahoo. Most of the news that attract hatred comments are the AP origin ones. Again I agree that yahoo allows it and I will join Bianca on writting to yahoo to make them stop!. I think an intelligent discussion hearing to all sides are stimulating to the mind but flat out racism and harrassment have no place on this or any other society let alone on the front page of yahoo news don’t you think!?
Loonesta
August 4th, 2011 at 3:43 pm
Oh those racist comments are still going strong, keying on the Yahoo probably from the computer they get to squat at for the next hour in their underfunded public library, continually stimulated like kids in a sugar silo by the sour political and economic atmosphere fogging their vision.
I was struck most by how above all, these alleged people’s sense of humor only is capable of consisting of whatever jollies they obtain from witnessing injury and/or pain happen to others, only exceeded by the times they can cause it themselves.
And they have yet to recover from the fact that we have a president who is not white enough for their standards. Any posting of even the most picayune information about Barack Obama, or anyone w/ that last name, is destined to receive flaming comments from the pathetic likes of Nobama and others. Comments by made by others that use any form of urban slang or expression erupt in off-topic racist replies from this stale, sad shriveling species.
Ms. Very Stupid
August 4th, 2011 at 5:12 pm
Ha Loonesta - you have read Nobama’s posts too? That person REALLY has issues! You are so correct and it is an absolute shame!
Jessica
August 9th, 2011 at 9:28 am
Im a black woman and I cringe everytime I see an article about a black person because I know the comment section will be filled with hate. Ive always been one to say not all white people are racist and then when I read these hateful remarks, It makes me believe well maybe the vast majority in this country really are and they let it out online. I know thats not the case. Some are and some arent but reading those comments really messes with my head and saddens me. Sometimes I think Yahoo has an agenda, puts up these racial articles on blacks and other minorites on purpose cause thats the reaction they want. Certain things in the articles ive noticed can be a bit racist too. This isnt just hurting minorities, its also making white people look bad. Ive reported lots of people especially the same ones I always see making racist comments yet their profiles havent been deleted. I dont want to give up my yahoo email address but I think I might have to.
YahooisaJoke
August 15th, 2011 at 6:30 pm
Hah. Yahoo comments are the iggest most racist joke of the internet. The articles the post on there ffrontpage are usually of little importance as well but are written with marketing speech to gain clicks. Of course being that your lowest common denominator is that many people have a Yahoo email account you are boudn to find that unfortunately those “FW:FW:FW:FW:REPUBLICAN/AMERICA-HELL-YA” racist ignorant weirdo flock to that site easily. I just want to say to any foreigners who visit that site that we are all not like that! Sorry. I’m Black as well!
luke
August 28th, 2011 at 7:58 pm
I get the whole “free speech” argument, but Yahoo! is a publicly traded corporation where they can limit material as they see fit. It’s not as if Yahoo! is the only server where racist people can go to post drivel. They can buy their own servers and make a site if they wish, or they can all meet in someones house and wear robes and pointy hats. But there is no law that entitles them to say whatever they want on Yahoo! if Yahoo! decides to moderate or outright ban that type of talk.
Some of Yahoo!s articles are sort of racebaiting anyway. They always seem to publish some stupid study about this or that and people jump on it and fire off insults at any religious, political, gender, class, race or what have you.
I’ll stick to Google. At leas there you can filter the content down to news sources you know and trust.
yahoosucks
August 28th, 2011 at 8:06 pm
saying you’re opposed to outsourcing jobs isn’t a “white trash bigoted” view. Jobs shouldn’t be outsourced for a variety of reasons: environmental oversight, material waste, child labor laws, job growth for the nation in which you are incorporated are just a few reasons.
KulkulkanX
September 2nd, 2011 at 10:58 am
I found this site after getting sick and tired of the sick racist crap on the yahoo news comment. I’ve tried to interject on there, and get folks to agree, but feel like a small voice in the wilderness. I’m so glad that I found this article! I’m going with google from now on, I guess and am sending off to yahoo exactly why!
sickofyahoo
September 7th, 2011 at 1:10 am
I closed my account with Yahoo and use googlemail. I do not go to Yahoo.com for anything. I think they are absolutely disgusting. Everytime I was online they had an article about Seal & Heidi, Naomi Campbell complaining about something or Selma Hayek, Eva Longoria or somebody else being gay or something else absolutely ridiculous. The main thing was that the article had to be negative and rally up all of the toothless, unemployed, losers that Yahoo loves so much. How is it that any website can make a profit catering to racists??? That is what yahoo does. I got so fed up that I wrote to a number of organizations to make them aware of the gay bashing, ignorant, racists on the website. Many organizations were not aware of Yahoo´s tatics. The CEO just got fired today but it still not enough. I would like to see them totally out of business.
Zane
September 18th, 2011 at 1:53 pm
I first noticed this site today The first racial comment that I saw was anti white but they jumped on him quick assuming he was black he could’ve been but who knows. And next I started exploring the sight they even had a way to bypass nigger with /\/igger. They do put some articles based on race like one with south Africa had to recall Chinese condems cause they were to small. They started calling them buckle draggers and all kinds of things it was ridiculous.
Belru
September 22nd, 2011 at 11:09 am
So who has some CONSTRUCTIVE advice for DOING something about it? I find Yahoo comments HIGHLY offensive.
Belru
September 22nd, 2011 at 11:10 am
The MAJORITY of their comments are anti black and anti hispanic. Let’s get together and do something! Any ideas? Should we call the ACLU?
William
September 26th, 2011 at 7:37 pm
I believe in free speech, but I really have to question it after reading some of the comments that get left on yahoo. It seems it is where the uneducated idiots of the U.S. go to further educate themselves by all the wrong people. These are people who have gone to all the wrong websites to educate themselves on politics, war, and religion. It is really scary and I hope that those people do not represent the majority.
Jrock
September 29th, 2011 at 1:58 am
Oh man the racist, anti that, anti this is still going on strong. Every time I read an article I scroll down to see how many people love to be racist and claims to not be by saying stop using the racist card. Politics section is nothing but Obama bashing (sigh). Sometimes I play a game to see how many thumbs up and thumbs down I would get. First I would put a comment that would make sense to people that actually think and be tired of hearing people using the racist card or just tired of stereotypes. Next I type another comment with misspelled words, fragments, and so on so o n that states negatives things. Sadly my second comment heavily outweighs the one before it. The comment that makes you think such as do you the president doesn’t have the power you think he/she does would just get thumbs down and idiotic comments of how I am stupid, I am a democrap, and other stuff I am not like they know me or something. I am not into politics and racist crap, but dang yahoo has a whole lot of them it is really a shame that people would use the black, muslim, hispanic, and other things that are out of control card. Most of the comments are never related to the news it is just a person who thinks he has all the answers. What is sad is that most of these people are white but yeah there are some blacks ,well that is it, say negative things on the politics about what is coming up. After all the comment I begin to grow angry and wonder why is the government and some of the american people are so messed up. First it was funs and giggles with the comment and now it went to I want to beat some sense to some people.
lady
September 30th, 2011 at 1:03 pm
Yes, yahoo still post racist comments and its a shame. Yes these are people you don not know and it bothers me because it can be the same person you call your friend. I really do not like it. It is offensive and i really believe this world will never change.
Lewis
October 2nd, 2011 at 10:20 am
YAHOO needs to crumble, no one ever addresses the racist rants and most of the article seem to incite racism, I’m starting to think this is on purpose!!
ramu
October 5th, 2011 at 11:17 pm
I think Yahoo is doing this on purpose. They need to compete with Fox. They can’t get the readers from the better outlets and the Yahoo posters will look like jokers on more intelligent boards. So the only place the yahoos can go to is Yahoo. Win-win for all the yahoos.
Jrock
October 5th, 2011 at 11:29 pm
Actually I read that yahoo uses the same comments from months ago which explains why some of the comments isn’t related to the topic or why there is so many thumbs ups and thumbs down. Well that’s yahoo for yall. I don’t know if the editor or the guy in charge is too lazy or just overwhelm or just loving how people post stupid comments.
Annoyed
November 26th, 2011 at 9:25 am
I’ve noticed the volume of racists comments as well. I’ve just been looking at some and commenting against some in the past couple of days, and my anger with it all is what has led me to your page. Thank you for pointing it out. It’s really upsetting that yahoo would allow its comment section to become a platform for hate speech– comments that were once reserved for hate sites like stormfront, are now being found on mainstream sites. I’ve complained to yahoo about it before but the problem continues…I guess I just need to avoid looking at yahoo for a while, otherwise I will get a daily raise in blood pressure.
sham
November 27th, 2011 at 2:40 pm
i my self have complained to yahoo and they never replied mybe it was my foreign looking name they did not like maybe i should sign my email with a british name might get a response then i agree half the remarks made are nothing to do with the story all i can say is yahoo you should be ashamed for promoting racism
nathaniel eure
December 2nd, 2011 at 8:27 pm
I agree 100% the worse by far is ulfheonar…. some blonde she is awful. type in ulfheonar racist and 15 pages pop up.
I didnt realize this about Yahoo until this summer. I musy fess that I started fighting back but there are way too many of them. I think the best way to stop Yahoo is thru the education dept. if libraries and schools had yahoo locked out i bet they would change their policy.
nathaniel eure
December 2nd, 2011 at 8:31 pm
i am covinced yahoo posts the race baiting articles so they can get advertising dollars. google must be killling them. took me awhile to figure that out.
Hari
December 6th, 2011 at 12:25 am
The moderators are racists themselves.
Cher
December 12th, 2011 at 1:27 pm
I am so glad that there are other people out there who are as upset and offended by the racist comments under various news stories on Yahoo as I am. I was beginning to believe that I was living in a cruel and heartless place where the white English - and white people from everywhere, actually - did not actually care about other people if they happened to be of a different race and colour. Some of the comments were beyond cold, beyond cruel, descending to a level that was truly inhuman. Are there any white people out there who, like those of us of diverse racial origins - believe in treating other human beings with enlightened humanity, and not vicious, ignorant brutality?
ken norman
December 13th, 2011 at 10:22 am
It,s very sad that people proclaim intelligence and at the same pick and choose what people can or cannot say.This is a comment section and intelligent people can sift through and determine for themselves what is right and what is wrong.The obvious unintelligible comments go in one ear and out the other.People who admit to not having the intelligence to read and differentiate between good and bad have the option of censored sites geared for them. Get a life.
MichaelFromSeattle
December 13th, 2011 at 5:17 pm
Yahoo has again removed the “Comments” feature, and I can’t say I’ll be missing it. I was a very frequent (and controversial) contributor for the last ten years or so, and had many fans as well as detractors. Over the past few months, the racist comments have become even more disturbing, with people calling for race war and hurling insults at black victims of violence. I live in Mexico, and have been infuriated by those calling for a U.S. invasion of Mexico, and for shooting those who illegally enter the United states.
The reason for this increase in racist comments is directly related to the increase in joblessness. Frustrated unemployed people seeking scapegoats to vent their fury upon, and an emboldened core of fascists eager to capitalize on the demoralization of the unemployed by propagating anti-black and anti-Mexican hatred.
These are the same element, by the way, who call for hanging those who have been convicted of viewing child pornography.
Jackie
January 9th, 2012 at 4:05 pm
I am so glad I found this post. It ought to be criminal for websites to allow blatant racist comments. I can’t stand yahoo. The comments they allow are mean, evil and racist toward all non white people. Their comments are so hurtful I don’t really read yahoo news anymore. I did today and sure enough, they were ranting about an Asian woman who received a racist comment on her reciept. Of course the racist clerk was defended very rigorously. What a sad state of affairs in America. Hatred will never triumph. We are paying a great price for it.
Fernando Rodrigez
January 31st, 2012 at 11:14 am
Hello I recently decided to jump off yahoo. The Email gets lost after 3 Months inactivity.
The comments on internet show how many people are really evil and what they hide from others. I encountered such comments on many sites, like youtube, or yahoo. What I can´t understand is that they don´t do anything about it. How about a system to block out all people who use prophanities too much, a system blocking out bad words? How about people who ban stalkers and racists? It´s very good you wrote something about it, because it´s 2012 and time to do something about it. We can´t change the minds of the mad, but we can let them by themselves instead of giving them a chance to plant their seeds of wickedness.
Eddy
February 1st, 2012 at 7:32 pm
yahoo comments, yahoo news, yahoo answers everything part of yahoo is filled with ignorant fools and trolls. I usually don’t read the comments/posts of others as it is a very easy way of getting depressed especially if they are talking about your ethnicity.