My BlogPal (I think I am going to Trademark that term) Maddie Grant wrote a post about her encounter with Associations Now magazine. Then she followed up with a post about the Keen Article after being challenged by Acronym's Scott Briscoe. So, here is my take on the whole thing now that I have had a chance to read it.
Keen is mostly worried that we will accept information as fact that isn't. Primarily, as an expert in an area, he is afraid you will believe someone else with less credentials over him. Web 2.0 doesn't vet knowledge, credentials, and status like traditional media. He likes the old way. It works for him. I understand that. It worked for years.
However, it also meant that people that weren't necessarily experts, but that had bits of really good knowledge, never got to share them. Well, now they can.
A lot of what you find on Web 2.0 is crap. I agree. But in the long run, it vets itself. Pages with total garbage get fewer views and go away. The long tail curve goes into effect. The waste goes to the end. It just means you have to sort a little more, but you get a lot more information. You can quickly scan 10 pieces of information and pull out 5 good nuggets. I would much rather do that than read one newspaper story and get 2 nuggets. I learn from having to sort the information as well.
He doesn't bash Web 2.0 all that much. He does see that it isn't going away. And he does acknowledge the need for associations to get involved in order to continue to be the provider of information for its members. All in all, an interesting read. He is a bit elitist, and sounds like a curmudgeon. But in the end, I think he gets it (to a degree).
Keen is mostly worried that we will accept information as fact that isn't. Primarily, as an expert in an area, he is afraid you will believe someone else with less credentials over him. Web 2.0 doesn't vet knowledge, credentials, and status like traditional media. He likes the old way. It works for him. I understand that. It worked for years.
However, it also meant that people that weren't necessarily experts, but that had bits of really good knowledge, never got to share them. Well, now they can.
A lot of what you find on Web 2.0 is crap. I agree. But in the long run, it vets itself. Pages with total garbage get fewer views and go away. The long tail curve goes into effect. The waste goes to the end. It just means you have to sort a little more, but you get a lot more information. You can quickly scan 10 pieces of information and pull out 5 good nuggets. I would much rather do that than read one newspaper story and get 2 nuggets. I learn from having to sort the information as well.
He doesn't bash Web 2.0 all that much. He does see that it isn't going away. And he does acknowledge the need for associations to get involved in order to continue to be the provider of information for its members. All in all, an interesting read. He is a bit elitist, and sounds like a curmudgeon. But in the end, I think he gets it (to a degree).
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