Mumbai. Realizing that the comments left by users on the website of The Times of India were becoming as much awe-inspiring and breathtaking as Rediff comments, Rediff management and editorial board have decided to reemphasize and cement their position as the market leader in user comments by releasing a yearbook of comments.
The yearbook will contain some of the mindboggling comments left by readers on various news articles published on Rediff.com in the last one year.
“The comments will prove how Rediff acts as a catalyst for lateral thinking among the netizens,” Rediff CEO Ajit Balakrishnan said, “Our website has played a vital role in the growth of creativity in the country and this yearbook is an attempt towards documenting the same.”
Apparently, a Rediff commentator
Sources inform that Rediff is trying to convince the former President of India Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam to inaugurate the yearbook, for Dr. Kalam had always stressed on the need for “creativity”.
However, the going could be tough for Rediff as many of the user comments selected for the yearbook smack of extreme ideologies such as regionalism, casteism, and communalism – something Kalam would never approve of.
“Yes, there are some instances such as Hindus and Muslims clashing on a news report on resignation of Steve Jobs, and Biharis being blamed for Telangana crisis,” Mr. Balakrishnan revealed and conceded that such comments could put off Kalam.
Rediff CEO claimed that such comments, despite being radical in tone and content, were chosen for the yearbook as they proved that Rediff readers were not only overtly creative, they were also politically astute and could have inspired politicians like Digvijay Singh to emulate them.
“I still remember a comment calling for investigation of Tamil Brahmins’ role in 9/11 attacks,” Mr. Balakrishnan recalled a gem of the comment that was left on his website much before Digvijay Singh started blaming Hindu groups for every terror attack.
Rediff is hopeful that once the yearbook is released, it would inspire a whole lot of new commentators to visit their website and leave even more awesome comments with an aim of being featured in the next yearbook.
“We hope to win back those readers who have started commenting on the Times of India website,” a Rediff source said, “We just hope and pray that Times of India doesn’t go ahead and invite their top commentators to The Newshour with Arnab Goswami.”
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