Odyssey is launching Constructive Discourse Threads (CDT), powering you to write your own article in response to a previously posted story. Visually, these stories will be threaded below the original story, so we can have more interactive communication within the community and easier way to follow topical discussions.

Since we restarted Odyssey last year, a singular focus and lean team got to work, building what we see as the future of information consumption on the internet. Constructive Discourse, the act of gracefully discussing matters that are important to us with the aim of building up the author and the readers, has been deeply missing from the heart of media (and social media in general).

Constructive Discourse Threads (CDTs) on Odyssey represents the opportunity and promise of constructive dialogue, considerate discussion and examination, analysis, criticism, rebuttal and civil thought threads about any topic. It is lead by an original creator writing an article, and then synergized by future interested response contributors. In other words, a creator who wants to respond to an article and sees the “Write a Response” button below an original story can now contribute to the discourse. Once the responder writes a full response article and posts it, our editors will review it and then push it live. Then, the response article should show up as a thread below the original article for everyone to see. See the video below depicting how to find it.

Now to the question of why constructive dialogue?Democracy cannot operate optimally without free and truthful flow of information. Here at Odyssey, we believe the truth is elevated in a good conversation and through constructive dialogue and diverse voices. While “feedback tools” (e.g. comment sections, reply buttons) on the internet have been damaged by sensationalist takes, hate speech, trolling, instant blaming and the vitriolic effects of certain social media - we still believe in the potential of constructive discourse. Through bidirectional media and under safe conditions, discourse can elevate the game of a writer and thinker and sharpen their acumen. In an overwhelming number of scenarios, discourse about a story becomes more valuable than the original story itself.

To read on about how the process works and how you can get involved in the action, click the thread below or see this article. Plus, you can reach our to careers@theodysseyonline.com to receive the invitational.