The most important news and commentary to read right now. - The Slatest - Slate Magazine

Although those who decide to express their feelings on the Internet usually don't have many nice things to say, the opposite is usually true of reviewer. In what the WSJ calls "one of the Web's little secrets," the average grade for things online is around 4.3 stars out of five.

Some people are making a concerted effort to bring some negativity to the review world, but the truth is that the general positive attitude of reviewers could have more to do with culture than anything else. Even when talking about products with friends, people are much more likely to mention those they liked rather than the ones they hated...