I always enjoy reading about how technology is destroying our culture. Brad Inman points out how the Web 2.0 backlash is starting with the new Andrew Keen book The Cult of the Amateur. The book's title is literal - in essence, Keen says the journalistic traditions that insure accurate, objective and insightful reporting of news and information are being usurped by legions of amateur Web 2.0 citizen journalists. I haven't read the book yet, but NYT book critic Michiko Kakutani's review supports Keen's thesis that “ the Web 2.0 revolution is really delivering superficial observations of the world around us rather than deep analysis, shrill opinion rather than considered judgment.”
And I completely agree with Mr. Keen...
But I simply sigh and wonder how the technology critics propose to reverse the inexorable adoption of a populist technology like Web 2.0. Keen's argument captures a snapshot reality - Web 2.0 degrades information - but the fallacy is there can be no reverting back to a state where journalists and other old guard cultural beacons rule the gateways of information. And Mr. Keen doesn't seem to propose a vision that might correct the gaming of the information distribution system that Web 2.0 may be creating... (I'll have to read the book to find out...)
Web 2.0 is inevitable and here are some old world metaphors illustrating the Pandora's Box of technological sea change:
Movies > Television
"I hate television. I hate it as much as peanuts. But I can't stop eating peanuts."
- Orson Welles, famous film director
Television vulgarized the art of film making as a new medium with "on-the-fly" production values that couldn't replicate the insightfulness and plotting of a feature film.
Audio Recordings > Radio
"When radio stations started playing music the record companies started suing radio stations. They thought now that people could listen to music for free, who would want to buy a record in a record shop? But I think we all agree that radio stations are good stuff."
- Niklas Zennstrom, co-founder of KaZaa, Skype and Joost
Radio was real time mass media, the internet of their day... and it's easy to see in hindsight market forces always adapt. This is a great old world quote from the founder of successful online companies that are changing industries.
Mainframes > PCs
"There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home."
- Ken Olson, president, chairman and founder of DEC
Old Fifth Estate > Web 2.0 media
“Andrew Keen is a brilliant, witty, classically-educated technoscold—and thank goodness. The world needs an intellectual Goliath to slay Web 2.0's army of Davids.”
- Jonathan Last, online editor, The Weekly Standard
Related articles:
| 
;)
;)
Very interesting post Patrick. I was just at a friend's place on the weekend checking out his new computer with a 24" wide screen monitor while we watched videos posted on various sites from around the world on every topic imaginable and we asked... what will happen to traditional media?
Who needs television, radio, etc... anymore? We are creating our own content & entertainment.