About Commentopia

"The Big Story, The Best Comments"

A Digest of Best Readers’ Comments from Top News Sites and Blogs

Commentopia is not a news aggregator but a curated digest of public opinion that creates a dynamic Internet version of a traditional “Letters to the Editor” page. It is the ideal site for the reader who wants a quick take on what’s being said on major topics of the day. Each selection provides a link to the original article and comment thread.

Commentopia’s curatorship is driven by three criteria: objectivity, credibility and fair-minded public discussion. Its mission is not to act as comment-censor but to be a valued and trusted source for an audience seeking differing viewpoints and engaging debate.

Commentopia is the brainchild of veteran editor and writer, Errol Lincoln Uys, who has worked on newspapers and magazines in the United States, England and South Africa.

Uys (pronounced “Ace”) was founder and editor-in-chief of Reader's Digest’s South African edition and, after immigrating to the United States, senior editor at the Digest's world headquarters. He collaborated with James A. Michener on his South African novel, The Covenant, and wrote the historical novel, Brazil and non-fiction book, Riding the Rails: Teenagers on the Move During the Great Depression.

Says Uys: “Two ideas inspire Commentopia. You can call the first ‘counter-revolutionary,’ skepticism about the power of crowd wisdom – hitting a button to ‘signal’ what’s up or down, true or false, good or bad, a digital alchemy promising to ‘give the media back to the people.’ This is a potential blight on free and individual expression, stirring a mess of potage and hoping the best morsels will bubble – or aggregate -- to the surface.

“I look with awe at the mostly young geniuses who drive the Internet, but I don’t forget where I came from, especially the Reader’s Digest in its great days. No machine on earth could replace the flesh and blood editors who ‘curated’ thousands of articles a  month to find just thirty items of “enduring interest and lasting value” to millions of readers worldwide.

“The second idea inspiring Commentopia comes from listening to tech-savvy baby-boomers. They love the Internet and see it playing an ever-greater role in their lives, but find the info-tsunami deluging them overwhelming. They welcome a free service like Commentopia where the media stream is quieted, the voice of the people heard above the roar of the crowd.”

Errol Lincoln Uys

Founder, Editor-in-Chief

A writer and editor with decades-long experience in the United States, England and South Africa. Reporter and features writer for The Star, Johannesburg; editor of Post, Cape Town; deputy editor and chief reporter of South East London Mercury, London, U.K. Founder and editor-in-chief of Reader's Digest, South African edition and, after immigrating to the United States, senior editor at the Digest's headquarters. Collaborated with James A. Michener on his South African novel, The Covenant. Uys (pronounced "Ace") is the author of the critically-acclaimed historical novel, Brazil, and the non-fiction book, Riding the Rails: Teenagers on the Move During the Great Depression

Website:  http://www.erroluys.com

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