Quote:
Originally Posted by Elise Hempel
I agree with any attempts to make blind judging more "blind." I also wonder -- and I'm taking a risk here: Should Alex be posting comments on any of the finalist sonnets? It seems that he may have more than just a little influence.
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Elise, I don't know whether that statement is more insulting to Alex, or to the rest of us for insinuating that we're such geese that we would be more influenced by his comments than by others - or by our own thinking.
The Sphere just doesn't work that way. We're all adults here. Alex owns and manages the site, and is in charge and well respected, but if you read the Workshop Boards you'll note that he never posts his own work, and only infrequently participates in the critical (as opposed to administrative) discussions. Alex's comments have no more influence than anybody else's, and possibly less than some. If anything, you should be concerned that other members - active, vocal, persuasive, well regarded and frequently published - would influence others and "swing" votes. Possibly we should have blind judging and blind comments. Alternately, we can stop worrying about it, vote our hearts and minds, congratulate the winners, thank the judges, and get on to the next poem.