Cochrane has updated the process for managing comments on published articles on the Cochrane Library. This is due to the closure of UK-based Cochrane Review Groups when the NIHR funding ended in March 2023, calls to process comments more quickly to facilitate discussion, and requests to reduce the management burden for editorial staff. Previously, comments were received by central staff and passed to Cochrane Review Groups to process and to make decisions with authors on whether to publish a comment, publish a response, and/or revise or update the review as a result. We have moved to a process whereby comments that pass specific moderation standards are published immediately, then forwarded to contact authors with guidance on how to respond, cc'ing Managing Editors, Handling Editors or Feedback Editors, where possible. Any comments with issues, such as those that are libellous, abusive, obscene, in breach of confidentiality or copyright, or illegal or unethical in some other way, will not be published, and will be flagged to the Managing Editors, Handling Editors or Feedback Editor. The process change aligns with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidance on handling post-publication critiques and has been made so that comments publication is streamlined while still allowing Managing Editors, Feedback Editors, and Handling Editors to support authors in their responses. Full details on how to submit comments are available on the Cochrane Library.
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