Managing Comments made on your Blog Posts

In the previous tutorial we showed you how to update your Wordpress language and timezone, as we continue our series on basic Wordpress features, we will now discuss how to manage a comments.  When you post a new blog message, you have the option to allow your visitors to post comments that your other visitors can see as well.  While this is a great way to encourage dialogue and get your visitor's thoughts on your posts, sometimes you may need to modify or delete a comment. 

How do I change my Comment Settings?

The Comments option allows visitors to your website to respond to each individual blog post.  To set up how comments are managed on your website, first log into your WordPress Dashboard.  Once logged in, click on "Settings" in the left menu and then "Discussion" to bring up the window to manage your comments:

• Default article settings:  Here you can set if comments are allowed on new articles that you post on your website.
• Other comment settings:  The most important options in this section are deciding if you want your visitors to register in order to make a comment.  While this will increase the chances of relevant comments, it also may decrease the number of comments on your website.
• E-mail me whenever: If you want to know when someone makes a comment, make sure these are checked.
• Before a comment appears: If you want to approve comments before they are posted, make sure this box is checked.
• Comment moderation: To help fight spam, you can add a filter to block messages that contain an excessive number of links.
• Comment blacklist: If you notice that you are getting spam that follows a certain pattern (for example from the same IP or use the same wording), you can add it to the blacklist to prevent future postings
• Avatars: If a visitor has an avatar (a picture that appears next to their name), you can have it set so that they are allowed to display it on your website.  You can also change the default avatar.

Once you have made your changes, click on Save Changes. These changes will affect only new Pages and Posts for your WordPress site. If you want to enable or disable comments for previously published comments, please see our article on Managing Comments for a WordPress Post or Page.

How do I delete Comments?

If you receive a comment that you do not want to appear on your website, you can "unapprove" them or send the comment to the trash to remove them from your site.  To delete or change any comments, in your Dashboard click on the "Comments" link on the left menu.  The following screen will appear:

Click the check box next to the comments that you want to remove from your website and select "Unapprove" or "move to trash" from the drop down menu under "Bulk Actions."  Then click "Apply" to remove the comment from your site.  You can also use this method to Approve messages as well.