Steven Johnson presents a side of the internet explosion that concerns anyone who isn’t published but wishes to utilize the voice of opinion. In its beginning, the web designers focus was centered on his/her purpose of the site. The focus has move to us, the public. It also goes beyond giving us a product or service. It wishes to know what we think and how we feel. The public has responded to this en mass. Anyone with an observation of a topic will take the time to express themselves with blogs, tweets, or news feed updates. This offers an opportunity John Q Everyman has never had in human history, the ability to be heard without being published.
This is disconcerting to those who do focus on being published. There is a protest being presented from the academy and media centers. It states that outlets like the blog and Wikipedia will take away from those who work hard to uphold the integrity of news and education. It will make it difficult to distinguish a true source from an opinion. With the increase in volume, the separation of information wheat from opinion chaff will blur the line of truth.
Johnson sees the points on either side. He has taken the initiative to provide comfort to either side. The trafficking of opinions will happen if we want it to or not. That being realized, Johnson has developed a program to organize the floating information in a way that you can find things pertinent to you and your world. Outside.in takes the conversations about a topic and brings them together for those who would benefit from the dialog. Johnson has essentially helped create the world’s largest office water cooler. Knowing its there, the people can take a break from the cubical life and see what else is going on in the office. You receive something CNN cannot provide, the pertinent events that fly under headline radar.
This should be a comfort to the experts. It concerns the events important to the public but takes nothing away from their specific fields. The topics of quantum physics and how your local high school JV girl’s basket ball team will do this week rarely coincide. According to Johnson, each subject has its expert and can comment appropriately. Each one has its place, and we shouldn’t worry about the size of the river of voices. Johnson is proposing the use of a raft to navigate the white water of the internet.
Johnson’s observations are accurate and his solution is excellent. Time has always promoted the access of information. It started with the invention of the printing press and now offers instantaneous interaction. It is easy to see how the information elite would be threatened by this turn of events. History has shown us their reactions. When someone holds the key to knowledge, opening the back door lessens the necessity of their presence. I agree with Johnson that this isn’t the entire truth. The journalist and researcher are essential to production and distribution of topics beyond the layman. Your neighbor might not be able to give you in-depth knowledge of the gulag, but a diligent researcher can. On the same token, that same researcher would have less credibility in presenting a case for the latest mini van like a soccer mom could.
Considering the evolution of information, I think Johnson’s proposal is just in time. Filtering the flow of conversation would save time and provide a more stable platform for dialog. You could find someone who was honest about their subject easier. Also if you wished to communicate your own observations, you could have confidence that the right ears would receive it. This takes nothing away from expert observations and literature. If an expert opinion was necessary, the populace knows where to find them.
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