Hacker News
Show HN: Respectify – A comment moderator that teaches people to argue better
Hacker News · Feb 25, 2026 · Collected from RSS
Summary
My partner, Nick Hodges, and I, David Millington, have been on the Internet for a very long time -- since the Usenet days. We’ve seen it all, and have long been frustrated by bad comments, horrible people, and discouraging discussions. We've also been around places where the discussion is wonderful and productive. How to get more of the latter and less of the former? Current moderation tools just seem to focus on deletion and banning. Wouldn’t it be helpful to encourage productive discussion and teach people how to discuss and argue (in the debate sense) better? A year ago we started building Respectify to help foster healthy communication. Instead of just deleting bad-faith comments, we suggest better, good-faith ways to say what folks are trying to say. We help people avoid: * Logical fallacies (false dichotomy, strawmen, etc.) * Tone issues (how others will read the comment) * Relevance to the actual page/post topic * Low-effort posts * Dog whistles and coded language The commenter gets an explanation of what's wrong and a chance to edit and resubmit. It's moderation + education in one step. We want, too, to automate the entire process so the site owner can focus on content and not worry about moderation at all. And over time, comment by comment, quietly coach better thinking. Our main website has an interactive demo: https://respectify.ai. As the demo shows, the system is completely tunable and adjustable, from "most anything goes" to "You need to be college debate level to get by me". We hope the result is better discussions and a better Internet. Not too much to ask, eh? We love the kind of feedback this group is famous for and hope you will supply some! Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47151842 Points: 68 # Comments: 102
Full Article
Respectify helps you maintain respectful and relevant discussions in your online community. Scroll down Respectify creates healthy communication on your website. Ever seen comments like this? (Not about bears) Catch it before it's posted. Teach the user why it's wrong. Let them edit and try again. Respectify is not (just) a moderator: we edify at the same time as protecting your site.Not all people will listen. But some will. And the world will be better for it. Scroll down Control how people interact in the space you own. Keep Things Relevant Want comments to stay about the topic of the page or blog they're on? Respectify can do that.It's configurable. The world isn't binary and neither are our settings. Disallow What You Don't Want Got a problem with trolls? Got people repeatedly posting 'good faith' comments that are not? ('What about...', 'I'm only saying that...', 'Not all polar bears...')Tell Respectify what to disallow. It won't be posted. Avoid Dog Whistles Sometimes people write things that sound like they're saying one thing, but their words are 'coded' — to mean something else to some readers.For example, someone might write: 'Those polar bears are always ruining our porridge.' To most readers, this seems like a complaint about bears and food. But to certain groups, it's actually saying something else entirely. (The real comments are not about bears.)You can avoid this by telling Respectify what not to allow. Tailor it for your site, topics, and audience. Spam Protection We take a completely different — and surprisingly effective — approach to spam detection.Instead of relying on blacklists or captchas, Respectify uses AI to understand the context and intent of comments. This means it can catch sophisticated spam that traditional methods might miss, while letting genuine comments through without hassle. Scroll down Help users express themselves better. It's easy to frame things badly In the heat of the moment, we don't think clearly.How will what you write be seen by the other person? Are you really understanding their point, or replying to what you think their point is?Respectify catches when a comment isn't phrased well. It tells you how and why. Avoid misunderstandings Sometimes what we write isn't what we mean.Respectify can catch when your comment might be misinterpreted, and suggest ways to rephrase it so your meaning is clear. Promote positive interactions Respectify can identify comments that contribute positively to the discussion and highlight them.This encourages a more respectful and engaging community. Foster a respectful community By filtering out disrespectful comments and promoting positive ones, Respectify helps create a welcoming environment where users feel safe to express their opinions.
Share this story