‘Here Comes Everybody’ claims we have the power

By on April 7th, 2009 In Social Media

herecomeseverybodyI’m reading a fascinating book about the revolution that is social media and even though I’m not finished with it yet I thought I’d share some nuggets. The book is “Here Comes Everybody” by Clay Shirky, and it’s subtitled “Revolution doesn’t happen when society adopts new technology, it happens when society adopts new behaviors.” Shirky is a journalist/writer and he’s on the faculty of NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program.

In a nutshell his thesis is that technology simply provides people with new tools to communicate and it’s up to us to decide what to do with it. He covers lots of topics including the increased opportunity for collaborating and solving social issues by coming together, but I was really struck by the chapter he calls “Everyone is a Media Outlet” since it’s so relevant to our profession. Shirky writes: “Our social tools remove older obstacles to public expression, and thus remove the bottlenecks that characterized mass media.”

OK, nothing surprising there. But then he suggests:

“The result is the mass amateurization of efforts previously reserved for media professionals.”

He believes that the skill previously known as journalism is moot because the Internet has redefined what it means to be a journalist. We can all be journalists now, and that means the old rules no longer apply. He discusses the case of blogger Josh Wolf, who was arrested and served 226 days in jail for not releasing evidence of a demonstration he videotaped. He writes:

“Now that there is no limit to those who can commit acts of journalism, how should we alter journalistic privilege to fit the new reality?”

Anyway, the whole book is full of interesting case studies and examples and provides great food for thought, especially as we struggle to figure out where to pitch in a post-mainstream journalism world.

Comments

Stephanie Sheppard Says:
April 8th, 2009 at 8:59 am

Great post, Len! Many media pros are finding it frusterating that you no longer need a solid background or education in journalism – and thus, the commitment to objectivity and fact-checking – to publish content that spreads to the general public. When a ranting blog post comes up in a Google search just as easily as a New York Times article, what will people do to find credible sources? Especially with the blend of personal and professional online. Can we trust people to do a little digging before determining what and who they believe?

Len Gutman Says:
April 8th, 2009 at 9:29 am

Ironically, there is an event taking place in Moldova right now that speaks to exactly what Shirky writes about: http://tinyurl.com/djo4qj

Marketing Sociologist Says:
April 8th, 2009 at 10:03 pm

Good point about journalism skills, Stephanie and Len – TMZ is an excellent example.

On the other hand, I am a journalist who has turned to blogging. I learn new things every day, as I did as a reporter. It all depends upon your level of commitment and professionalism.

Think it shows since my blog is in Technorati’s top 15 percent. Then again, a sister site, my guitar collection, is sometimes higher than marketingsociologist.blogspot.com which I sweat and labor over. Isn’t the Internet wonderful?

Just a quick add – in the top 15 percent of all blogs and the agency handling Celebrity Fight Night deemed I wasn’t big enough to cover it. That’s why agencies are like buggy whip makers in this century. They are excluding new media in their thinking. Fight Night is just one example. I could go on all day about 20-somethings at PR agencies that don’t get it.

Marketing Sociologist Says:
April 8th, 2009 at 10:08 pm

Let’s not limit it to 20-somethings, but they are generally the ones who have blocked my coverage of events. Sports teams like the D’backs get it. Guess it is narrow minded, “I’m better than you” thinking at any age group. Still say, press release thinking, agencies = 21st Century buggy whip makers.

Pat Elliott Says:
April 9th, 2009 at 9:46 am

Good post, Len. Whether the issue is amateurization or new avenues for citizen journalists, there are many business implications. For example, the travel industry comps legitimate journalists covering the industry. When I developed standards for online communications for Best Western in the mid-90′s a key concern was the ability to differentiate between fake and real “reporters” requesting various perks. More than a decade later, there’s still no clear national or global credentialing process for non-journalist reporters and a growing belief that no credentials are needed. The volume and influence of many non-journalists who have integrity continues to grow but so does the volume of scams, quackery and outright dangerous practices, particularly in financial and healthcare information. At some point there needs some form of standards readers can use to rate credible information and weed out the scammers.

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