Yesterday, Wired Magazine produced the most exuberant report on the Internet I have read since the mid-nineties. This isn't the information age, writer Chris Anderson tells us, it is an age where armies of amateurs are happy to work for free.
Yeah, sure, the Internet is great, but if there has to be a revolution, I think we need to come up for a better name for it than The Army of Amateurs Age, or Wire’s bland The Age of Peer Production. How about the Do-it-Yourself Age? There's a term I'm CERTAIN will catch on like wild fire.
Now, I've been thinking about this article all morning because while I essentially agree with the premise that user generated content is greatly affecting business practice, I find the glee with which the piece is written slightly alarming. It is true that the Internet is a very exciting place right now, but it can't all be sunshine and lollipops. In reality, it's not, and I think we should be distrustful of at least some of the ideas put forth in this article, namely, that companies are creating “tools that give voice to millions”. Clearly this is a fallacy. Companies may collect the feedback of millions, but assuming the Dunbar number is accurate and the human brain can not maintain more than 150 friends, I believe it is safe to say that the voices of millions will not be heard. In fact, on the Internet only today's voice is heard.
Comments on this entry are closed.