Much of nastiness and hatred on the Internet is made possible by anonymity. When you hide behind an alias, you can be an asshole with impunity — and many people do.
I’m thrilled that YouTube is pushing to put real names on videos and comments. It’ll be a better place for it.
It’s hard to have a good conversation with someone hiding behind an alias. Anonymity has an important role online, but it also empowers anyone who wants to disrupt and destroy a conversation without contributing. Disclosure forces people to be honest and take responsibility for their own words.