Recently one SafetyAtWorkBlog reader accused SafetyAtWorkBlog of closing down debate by rejecting or questioning a comment. SafetyAtWorkBlog is a moderated blog meaning that all comments are read and assessed prior to posting. It is essential for a blog of this type to apply editorial scrutiny and will continue to do so.
Part of our editorial policy, or discretion, is that comments will be rejected, usually with an explanation, if they do not relate to the original blog article or they become abusive.
Recently there has been an increase across the blogosphere of marketers submitting comments specifically to provide links back to their own websites or as spam. In many circumstances this action is advertising by stealth and marketers can expect SafetyAtWorkBlog to open discussions on paid advertising options. The spam is filtered for deletion.
One particular risks of blogs is that some people belive that anything on the internet is free to be reproduced. This is not the case with SafetyAtWorkBlog who takes the copyright statement on our posts and pages seriously.
The copyright statement allows for “excerpts” to be used on other blogs but recently one reader not only reproduced an entire article but the comments people had posted as well. SafetyAtWorkBlog demanded the removal of the copyrighted material and the content was, reluctantly, removed by the website owner.
Readers should note that SafetyAtWorkBlog is a member of the Copyright Agency Limited and will pursue royalties where applicable. For those who want to reproduce and reprint the articles, some are available through Newstex. We use Copyscape as an internet-wide service for checking on plagiarism and unauthorised reproductions.
All these restriction and conditions are necessary to maintain integrity but that should not deter people from asking to reprint SafetyAtWorkBlog articles as several have appeared, with permission, in online magazines and websites.
Kevin Jones
Editor – SafetyAtWorkBlog