How the New Statesman Comments Section Works

We’ve launched a new comments section to create a thoughtful, lively space for readers to discuss the stories we publish. Below you’ll find everything you need to know about how to take part — from our community guidelines to how moderation works behind the scenes.

Our aim is simple: to host conversations that add insight, expertise, personal experience and constructive challenge to the journalism we produce. Our reporters and editors will also drop into comment threads from time to time to answer questions and join the discussion.

Commenting Guidelines

We want debate — even sharp disagreement — but we also want a space where people feel able to participate without being shouted down, insulted or misled. To keep conversations productive and respectful, the following types of comments are not allowed:

• Insults, slurs, abusive language or harassment, including targeted comments about other contributors, public figures or New Statesman staff.
• Obscenity, crude language, or attempts to dodge profanity filters (for example, using partial spellings or punctuation to mask swear words).
• Promotion or encouragement of self-harm or violence.
• Deliberate misinformation, fabricated claims posed as fact, or conspiracy theories.
• Threats, bullying, intimidation or personal attacks.
• Comments POSTED IN ALL CAPS or other forms of aggressive or disruptive posting styles.
• Repeated complaints about moderation decisions or attempts to pressure moderators into approving a comment.
• Spam, excessive posting, or commercial promotion.
• Impersonation, fraud, or encouragement of illegal or dangerous activity.
• Posting someone else’s private or identifying information (including doxxing).
• Sexually explicit, suggestive, or degrading content.
• Content that infringes copyright or violates intellectual property rules.

We reserve the right to remove comments that break these rules, derail a conversation, or undermine the purpose of the comments space.

How to Leave a Comment

You can comment on any article that has commenting enabled. To take part:

1. Sign in to your New Statesman account.

2. Scroll to the bottom of the article and select the comments section.

3. Type your comment in the box provided.

4. Click “Post comment.”

If you are not logged in, you will not be able to comment.

Display Names and Why We Use Real Names

Your comment will appear under the display name linked to your New Statesman account. We connect commenting to your account and real identity to encourage accountability, reduce impersonation and maintain a healthier discussion environment.

We believe comments are richer and more constructive when people stand behind what they say, and this policy helps us foster a community built on transparency and trust.

How to Flag or Report a Comment

If you come across a comment that breaks our guidelines, you can help keep the conversation constructive by reporting it at subscomments@newstatesman.co.uk

Our moderation team reviews all reports. While we may not respond to individual reports, each one is assessed and handled according to our policies.

How We Moderate Comments

The New Statesman uses a combination of automated tools and human moderators to keep conversations safe and worth reading. Our moderation aims to:

• Remove comments that break our rules or clearly disrupt discussion.
• Prioritise reader safety, particularly in cases of targeted harassment or harmful content.
• Promote good-faith debate, even when opinions differ sharply.
• Prevent threads from being overwhelmed by spam, repetition or bad-faith posting.

Comments may be reviewed before or after publishing depending on the topic, context and any recent activity on a thread. We do not edit comments for clarity or tone — if a comment is unsuitable for publication, it will be rejected or removed.

Our moderators’ decisions are final, and repeated attempts to relitigate them may result in further action, including temporary or permanent restrictions on commenting.

If you have feedback on the new comments section or suggestions for how we can improve it, we’d love to hear from you. You can contact the digital team using the details on our Contact Us page.