YouTube Comments Gets A Makeover

The YouTube comments section is a magnet for trolls and nonsensical chatter, but the Google-owned video service wants to change that.

YouTube today announced that it will revamp its comments section so that “comments will soon become conversations that matter to you.”

“In the coming months, comments from people you care about will rise up where you can see them, while new tools will help video creators moderate conversations for welcome and unwelcome voices,” YouTube said in a blog post.

That begins with a Google+ integration. Starting this week, comments from the search giant’s social network will pop up on users’ channel discussions tab. “This update will come to comments on all videos later this year,” YouTube said.

Going forward, the more substantial comments will float to the top. “You’ll see posts at the top of the list from the video’s creator, popular personalities, engaged discussions about the video, and people in your Google+ Circles,” YouTube said.

There will also be the option to make comments publicly or leave responses that can only be seen by your Google+ Circles. “Like Gmail, replies are threaded so you can easily follow conversations,” YouTube said.

Meanwhile, YouTube promised better moderation tools for video creators. “You have new tools to review comments before they’re posted, block certain words or save time by auto-approving comments from certain fans,” YouTube said. “These can help you spend less time moderating, and more time sharing videos and connecting with your fans.”