9 of 11

Write now Article Tools

RETURNING THE POWER TO THE PEOPLE

I remember the thrill of publishing my first blog post. Clicking on that "Publish" button, for the first time, was more exiting than slipping my first voting ballot into the voting box (that's how we do it down here, in rural Israel). Seeing my article on my blog was a rush like no other: "I'm a published author!" I actually declared out-loud.

The Internet is such a democratic tool, I can't help but love it. Who would have published me way back then? Me!? With no formal journalistic skills or expertise in a certain subject? No one, that's who! It is only with the possibility of user generated content (UGC), that I could begin a writing career. My readers voted for me with their clicks, and word of mouth made it clear to someone, out there, that my writing is what people want to read. The Internet, as a medium, does nothing more than mirror society.

Mirroring Democracy
The big, corporate fish and the fastidious can fight it all they want, but in the end, people want to hear other people (http://www.usatoday.com/money /media/2006-05-08-newspaper-ci rculation_x.htm). Also, it seems the fastidious don't have to worry quite yet, as people are used to a certain standard of information, they probably wouldn't trade The New York Times in for Joe-Schmo's Blog, just yet. What will happen, though, is that Joe will improve his writing and by then, it will be OK for Mr. Fastidious to RSS Joe, instead of The New York Times.

I, for one, am ecstatic about UGC, as it is the herald of a democratic information age. No longer do we rely on the obvious political agendas in the reporting of TV stations and Newspaper giants. Today, I can read the blog post of every person that was actually there. I can get all the sides to the story.

Sure, a lot of UGC is ridiculous amateur material, but that's where voting systems come in. Anyone can say something, and you, as a content consumer can choose to elevate them or bury them. Everyone gets a chance at becoming the people's choice (as many chances as you may need), and everyone has a say in the matter. It couldn't be a more compelling example of democracy, in action.

Mirroring the Capitalist Market
In many ways, UGC is what the capitalistic market is all about: Supply and demand. People building web-sites and ranting to their heart's desire is not new. They have been doing it since interface got friendly. With more UGC tools becoming even more user friendly (specifically blogs), more people are out there, publishing their thoughts. There was a demand for pluralization of thought on the web, and now that it's been accomplished, the demand is only growing. Mirroring the ever-expanding consumer markets, content consumers want an end-less variety, as well.

The value of UGC is as high as the value of freedom itself. UGC has quickly become the people's platform of choice, to finally be heard. As people in democratic countries have yet another channel in which they can express themselves, people of countries, where free speech is scarce can find a window of opportunity, to change their lives.

Learn more about this author, Tali.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about Assessing the value of user generated content (UGC)?
We want to hear your view. Write now!