Over the past year and a half I have been very interested in a movement that has been coined “Web 2.0″. It is in relation to how the internet, and our interaction with it, has evolved. Recently I started processing what the core values of this movement were, and where they were originating.
The initial response is “duh, these new internet realities have come about because of technological advances!.” But I don’t think it is as subtle as that. I believe there are much more profound societal changes that are driving this movement, and that technology has been the tool (ex. myspace, youtube, blogs), device (ex. computers, cellphones) , and the medium (the internet, websites, web services) that these new values have been expressed through.
Here the core values I see changing in our society at large that is strongly behind the Web 2.0 movement:
The initial response is “duh, these new internet realities have come about because of technological advances!.” But I don’t think it is as subtle as that. I believe there are much more profound societal changes that are driving this movement, and that technology has been the tool (ex. myspace, youtube, blogs), device (ex. computers, cellphones) , and the medium (the internet, websites, web services) that these new values have been expressed through.
Here the core values I see changing in our society at large that is strongly behind the Web 2.0 movement:
- Global Community: the world is quickly growing smaller, and our perspectives are growing much larger. We understand that there is a diverse world around us, but we also recognize that connecting to someone in community no longer has to be constrained by geography. We can and want to interact with people who are like minded, no matter where they live. Engaging in a community that likes what we like, and talks about what we like to talk about. We are also drawn to consider others, more than just ourselves. This emerging generation has strong value in social activism on a global scale.
- Authenticity: we would rather have a conversation over coffee with an expert, than attend their conference. We aren’t as interested in the “wow” factor, as we are with the “real” factor. I want to see someone in the middle of the conversation, on a blog, than read their article on CNN.com. Because then I know I am really getting them, their responses, and more importantly their humanity.
- Sharing: we want to share our experiences with the world. We want to share our videos, we want to share our opinions, we want to share our values, our pictures, our life story. We want to give an account or a witness or a testimony about what is happening to us, and what we really care about. Or what we really don’t a care about. We want to share a funny experience and hear the rest of the world laugh with us.
- The collective: we appreciate experts, but it is no secret that the more people that are addressing a topic, the better the result will be. We want to share in the authorship, the accountability and the result. We want to collaborate together on topics, themes, and things that interest us. We want a collective effort, that includes a collective accountability, that produces a collective result that is better than anyone of us could have done alone.
That is all I can think of now, but these are the roots of almost every Web 2.0 service, site, or fad I can think of. What do you think?
