Below the line in 2013: the year in comments, dust-ups and debates

We're looking back at the comments and conversations that made waves. What else should we add to our highlight reel?

george-orwell
George Orwell was far and away BTL's favorite writer this year. Photograph: Mondadori/Mondadori via Getty Images

Note: We've updated this article with commenters' suggestions for the best and worst of BTL. Scroll down to see their nominations.

With 2014 just around the corner, we’re taking a look back at 2013 and highlighting the most memorable conversations and debates. We’re shining the spotlight on the most popular comments and commenters, as well as the stories that moved Guardian readers to post so prolifically.

Below you’ll find a list of superlatives, from “most talked about story” to “commenter with the most free time”. The only superlative we haven’t announced is commenter of the year, which we’re leaving up to you. Comment in the space below and tell us which member of the BTL community impressed you the most this year. We also want to know what moments stand out from 2013: a particular debate? Snarky comeback? Surprising candor? We'll update this post with readers' nominations.

Our commenters have racked up 9,035,694 posts in 2013. Here are some highlights:

Most talked about story: “Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind the NSA surveillance revelations”  garnered 6,194 comments. The Guardian’s big reveal of Snowden as the NSA whistleblower sparked the most voracious conversation below the line this year. Some called him a traitor, some a hero. Some railed against the United States for surveying its citizens, while others criticised the Guardian for releasing government information. The article also gave us the following comment, which was one of the most recommended this year:

Biggest conversation starter: Alex Foster, whose comment on “NHS private sector climbdown a 'humiliating U-turn', says Labour”  got an impressive 170 replies, many about the benefits of turning to the UK’s National Health Service instead of opting for a (pricier) private hospital. His opinion touched off a heated debate, excerpted below:

More private sector involvement can only be a good thing if done correctly. Private hospitals are vastly superior and you are treated as a guest and not a burden.
If you had the choice would you rather be in an NHS hospital or a private one?

@Alex Foster - They're superior in only one respect; routine non-complex surgeries. If you have cancer, need an organ replacement or anything really really tricky then the NHS is still one of the best institutions in the world in which to receive treatment.

Also, the Doctors of the UK are trained almost exclusively within the NHS.

@Alex Foster - I don't know where you get this funny old idea from.

My Grandma got treated in a private health clinic for a cancer operation. She was neglected and ignored. It was awful. There were complications because of the poor aftercare.

When she had her second operation on the NHS, she was treated like a human being and cared for by the most wonderful staff.

When the private sector messes up - its US, the taxpayer, who has to fund the corrections to their mistakes. But the real cost can be someones life.

Runners up:TimJag sparked off an 89-comment debate about civil liberties with this comment on the Guardian's very first NSA story, "NSA collecting phone records of millions of Verizon customers daily."

Anyone have any clue as to how to stop our governments doing whatever the hell they like. I'm fed up with it.

@TimJag 06 June 2013 12:12am. Get cifFix for Firefox.

Get people to stop whining about "the war on terror" and recognize we've faced far greater threats in the past--civil war, invasion, etc.--and didn't need to turn ourselves into a fucking police state to fight the threats.

And on a more serious note, Storm's call for spoiler alerts in this review of After Earth got 84 responses from fellow commenters. One highlight:

Does the review give away major plot points? I'd like to know before I read it.

@Storm - kevin spacey is keyser soze

Most popular comment: webweasel, whose comment on “Microsoft takes $900m charge on Surface RT tablets” got a startling 19,527 recommendations

The price is the key. And I think it is something that other companies (except maybe Samsung) will struggle with. Apple had first move advantage. They now sell so many iPads, they can screw down their suppliers with volume discounts. MS can't do this on a v1.0 product so they either have to take a hit and subsidise their product like Google and Amazon (who can recoup through their services) or they have to have comparatively higher prices and accept lower sales volume. This is a lesson they should have learnt from their Zune debacle.

Most savvy commenter: Kizbot, who had 39 picked comments this year (be sure to check out her BTL profile). A 'picked comment' is a badge given by a Guardian staff member to highlight insightful (or witty) comments in a thread. 

Commenters who left their mark: Pagey, who made 12,725 comments this year. Runners up:MickGJ made 9,646 comments in 2013, and polystyrene made 9,511.

Our BTL profile ofTheGreatRonRafferty received 345 comments – the most out of any article in the series. Could it be his dinner party offering of "haddock, chips and mushy peas" that got him so much attention?

With over 9m (yes, that's nine million) comments on the Guardian, taking stock of the year's best moments is a daunting task. We know that numbers, like the ones we mention above (and were pulled by Guardian data guru Julian Fitzell), only tell part of the story. It's impossible to sum up the voices, quirks and personalities of the thousands of readers who make up the BTL community in one post, which is why we've been highlighting users from all different sections of the Guardian in this weekly series, including:

Check out the rest of this year's BTL profiles here.

As we've said, these highlights are only a fraction of the best moments from the Guardian comment threads. We need you to help us tell the whole story. What else should we add to this highlight reel? Snarkiest retort? Most improved commenter? Add your suggestions in the thread below and make sure to include links.

We're updating this post with your contributions all week. We've pulled your choices best and worst moments of the year above the line, as well as your picks for commenter of the year.

Highlights:

This comment has been chosen by Guardian staff because it contributes to the debate

Despite not being a left-handed bisexual vegan who cycles 500 miles daily to work, who loves Breaking Bad, loathes all things Apple, can't get enough of Beyonce, and can't stand Miley Cyrus, I do like the comments section.

This comment has been chosen by Guardian staff because it contributes to the debate

An honourable mention to the Sexual Healing thread - particularly the OP who fantasized about having group sex with old men who couldn't get erections. That coupled with the stock photo - it was the perfect storm.

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/oct/14/fantasise-group-sex-old-obese-men

The ruckus between the Guardian and the Daily Mail over the Ralph Miliband article probably had some of the most heated comments I've seen this year and that includes the badger culls.

Oh and the OBO is a joy as ever.

User avatar for teaandchocolate Guardian contributor

Another year has gone by and the Guardian is better, more gutsy, more fabulous than ever. There's nothing like a ruddy good row. Thanks to all - you keep my grey cells ticking over and,trust me, they are on their last legs.
Here's to next year! Love to all.

This comment has been chosen by Guardian staff because it contributes to the debate

No disrespect to the people mentioned ATL, but I want to say thank you to some wonderful knowledgeable contributors here who have taught me so much.

The areas I visit most are to do with politics, especially social security, and the cartoon threads - Bell, Rowson, and Sparrow are quite simply a joy.

I want to thank ArecBalrin, maple5, bifess, HindleA, LightACandle, suey2ey, Pagey, JessTheCrip, yahyah, temulkar, RogerOThornhill, and many more.
giselle97, TobyLatimer, refitman, GeoffWhit, BettysBlues, and more......

In fact, I'll have to stop there and apologise to everyone who I've missed.

And for making me smile - JackPranker, and the incomparable, ineffable, Madame Hermione Gingold who is the eighth wonder of the world......

The singel page that always comes to mind: Henry Smith.

That's because it's about the only comment piece that made the entire argumentative, vitriolic, and confrontational CIF herd swoon, and melt into nearly uniformly appreciative puddle of appreciation of the man's writing.

An exceptional piece because of the telling, and the response.

(And yes, he meant Harry Smith).

Lowlights and pet peeves:

The most uselessly insulting postings on CIF ....... Anyone who uses the word "Milliwagon" in every post :)

Please also include "Gidiot" and "Camoron", which I'm sick of seeing.

Disagree with the policy, but leave the insults out of it.

Your forgot Bliar. Signals poor comment to follow !

Nice, but we miss the statistics really really want to know: Who got modded the most times?

I'd guess that any articles by Tony Blair had the most modded comments on it.

And now, here are some of the nominees for commenter of the year. We can't embed all of them into this post, but don't worry, we're taking note of everyone's suggestions:

User avatar for mattpointblank Guardian staff

I'd nominate kisunssi: funny, friendly and informative, and "pillar of the community", if that's not too cheesy an accolade. And seconding this article's recommendation of kizbot, though we've clashed at times.

Kizbot certainly deserves recognition for the work she did on the threads about the crisis in Greece.And as well as getting the accolade of '' Most Savvy Commentator of 2013'' the Guardian might also consider giving her the C she should have got some time ago.

Goes without saying that Hermione Gingold aka First Lady Of Cyberspace deserves all the accolades she gets.Can't imagine CIF without her so hope she'll stick around for eternity.

Lots of interesting posters here- some i agree with ,some i don't and for others it's a bit of both.But that's what makes the world go round.

I hope deceased posters like Leni and Peter Jackson will never be forgotten by the cif community. And i hope those once regular posters who've disappeared are alive and well. Haven't ''seen'' Clunie for a while- someone who was a consistantly good poster on a wide range of issues and always worth reading.

Happy Xmas Ciffers and all the best for 2014.

Thanks to jaejunn, Shellshocked and johnypaty among others, who replied to me with actual INFORMATION that was really useful and informative.

Not forgetting the perennially sane & sensible kristinekochanski.

TheGreatRonRafferty.


I find myself crossing swords with TGRR at times, but he is definitely one of the CiF stars.

Recommending people: It's just preference to state a platitude, but what immediately springs to mind is

- Teaandchocolate.
- Bluecloud.
- Pagey.
- Kizbot.

Always a pleasure to exchange posts with, and in a few minutes, there will be others that spring to mind what I forgot, but that's life.
And some now sadly gone who I won't mention.

I would choose geckogreen. His CIFs are just so nicely written.

Apart from the usual wonderful ones like kristine and kiz, I'd like to nominate AhBrightWings and FrJack. (There are some who should be "eliminated from enquiries", but it's unseasonable to be nasty).
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