More on keyboard cowards

More than a year ago I wrote about the online discourse, which has been instructive for me overall but, as I observe, is distracting if not destructive in some quarters.  The people who spray venom more than they bring constructive energy do little to advance anyone's cause, and I call some of they keyboard cowards (they say things with a keyboard they would never say face-to-face).

Via Doc Searls this morning, here's an instructive (and scary) article from Line 56 about what's wrong with blogs.  Are blogs, in fact, cults?  I don't think so, but will allow that the online world shares many cultish traits -- you can't deny there's elitism, turf battles, conceit, and general exachange of gunfire (including flat-out unprovoked and destructive grenade-throwing). 

It's not all like that, of course.  I had a discussion an hour ago recounting how much I've learned from others by doing this -- in fact it's the primary reason I do.  You can probably safely say that the behavior you observe online mirrors what you observe driving in traffic, going to the supermarket, watching a ballgame, or anything else from the daily rote of life -- some contribute and are overall constructive, but some are selfish and overall destructive.

If you're looking at blogs as a PR outlet, yet more reason to do your homework and have your act together before you get started.  Once the shell fire starts, it's more than a full-time job to keep up.

Comments

[thebizofknowledge]

I stumbled across your blog while I was doing some online research. I definitely don't think blogs are cults, but I guess it depends on how we define "cult." To me, blogs are simply a new way for people to express themselves and share their thoughts with others. Is that naive?

[Mason Cole]

No, I don't think so at all. I do think, though, that blog "discussions" can get warped in a way that in-person or over-the-phone conversations typically don't. That, and enthusiasts are just that -- really enthusiastic. So if you're a blogger, or have a component of your communications strategy that includes blogs, you need to be prepared to keep up.