Jun
19
Wikinomics
June 19, 2008 | Tagged Wikinomics | 1 Comment
I’ve started reading Wikinomics which was a recommended book on the Cool Cat Teacher blog. At first, I’m thinking OMG I am so out of what’s going on with Web 2.0 in terms of all of the things we are trying like blogging, RSS, wikis, etc. The authors make it sounds as if the marketplace is changing every second because of the web. They site companies that have completely changed the work environment by using the web to collaborate across continents and disciplines.
My husband works for Turner Broadcasting and for years they have been lamenting the pending change in advertising revenue due to the shift of advertising to the Web. It’s a big pain in the neck for my husband because, as he claims, everyone thinks that Web operations are where the money is to be made as more people watch more TV on their computers. He is a researcher, and despite the studies that say that TV is still the primary medium for viewership, there are so many people who have bought into the web as the future you better get to soon if you want to stay competitive.
My husband comes home from work and I start talking about Wikinomics and the “so called future.” He rolls his eyes at me (not the first time) and says that Turner had a great first half of the year. The reason is from increased advertising revenue from (guess?) online web sites. The Web is so spread out over so many domains, websites, blogs, etc. that TV is still the place to reach the most people.
Okay, the reason I went through this long story is because I started checking out some of the blogs sited in Wikinomics like 43 Things. Let me tell you this is not a quality experience. The writing on the blog is just awful. And you start to think to yourself, “Is this the future of our culture?” I am happy to partake of high quality professional or semi-professional blogs like news organizations, not for profit organizations, etc. but sites where people blather on in self-absorption are very low brow.
I think what this boils down to is the need for really excellent teachers of writing. You need to be a good writer to work this medium. There are lots of ways, I suppose, to participate. But if you want to have an effect, you have to write effectively.
Comments
Create a free edublog to get your own comment avatar (and more!)1 Comment so far
You are so right. The blogosphere is pretty much a “write it in stream of consciousness” type experience, however, there are many sites that are cited in wikinomics that are great sites.
The trends are there and change is never very pleasant. The struggle that your husband is seeing is in the convergence of computers and television — the organizations have treated them separately, but honestly, they shouldn’t. Eyeballs are eyeballs no matter what screen they are seeing it on.
It is a challenge that is for sure. My current events class this year went on a behind the scenes tour at CNN and saw much of what you’re saying. I guess I came away with “Why does one have to choose?” Why is there a delineation between web news and television news? Why not have NEWS and then multiple methods of delivery. That would make more sense. It would be interesting to see what your husband thinks about the divide.