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There was a time when many observers believed in or at least hoped for the democratizing potential of the internet. We witnessed the rising popularity of participatory elements on online websites, resulting in next-level interactive communication structures of the ‘Web 2.0’—followed by such features’ fall from grace. The individual and strategic misuse of open text boxes was frequently observed, documented, and heatedly discussed, especially during the last decade. Due to the reach and relevance of news sites—and their closeness to the news production process—much attention was paid to comment sections surrounding journalistic products (eg, Quandt, 2018). Unsurprisingly, several relevant journalistic outlets decided in the last couple of years to shut these sections down and/or to shift comments to their social media pages. Typically, the outlets justify these decisions with the prevailing incivility and spread of …