Embarkation

This for me is the first step in what I hope will be many in the world of blogging. Were I a religious man I might say that I feel “blessed” with this opportunity to have my written word made available to anyone who may be interested enough to read it without having to go through the traditional routes of publishing, although depending on your inclination it may be more correct to say that I get off on adding to the overflowing cesspool of online wannabe pseudo-intellectuals. This may well be the case.

 

I’m probably not saying anything new here, but as my first post I’d like to first express how privileged I feel to be able to harness this incredible tool for what is essentially a selfish end; to have people listen to me. I’d also like to reflect upon the dynamics of the Internet, blogging or social networking sites in particular, and whether it has empowered or disempowered us all.

 

I’d like to think the former. I’d like to think that the Internet has brought about the democratization of information. I once heard an interview (with whom I cannot remember) and the guest spoke about how empowerment of the working and/or lower classes really began with the invention of the printing press. Because for the first time people did not have to rely on being fed information by authority figures (perhaps with their own motives and agendas or perhaps just fallibility); people who were literate (albeit few) could access it themselves. Before the economic and time saving benefits of the printing press each copy of a book or document had to be painstakingly copied by hand, a time consuming and expensive process which ultimately could only be afforded by wealthy individuals or institutions (like the monarchy or the church).

 

Economic methods of mass reproduction of information gave people greater affordable access to information, and over time education became relatively affordable, the cultural norm, rather than the exception. Power shifted (at least partially) from the wealthy to the working and/or lower class, as for the first time in history they harnessed the ability to interpret and decide for themselves, without the biased conduit.

 

I think the advent of the Internet and blogs – like one’s own personal editorial – brought about another epoch of democracy and media, just when it was needed. The decade prior, at least, saw embarrassing erosion in the standard of journalism, largely brought about by the increasing importance placed upon the commercial value of media. Don’t get me wrong – commerce has always played an important part in media, especially the early days of newspapers, and many of the more reputable rags probably would not be around today had they not forged a balanced partnership with their commercial sponsors. The problem is that many of these newspapers don’t exist anymore in a sense; by means of various corporate takeovers and buyouts by the Foxes and Fairfaxes of the world, they have been absorbed into the indistinguishable and undistinguished fabric of corporate media and diluted of any journalistic originality.  

 

The Internet and the freedom for much of society to participate in widely readable (or viewable or listenable) discourse has clawed back some of the power of expression that over time had once again largely been reclaimed by the privileged or rather wealthy few. It means that people don’t need to be particularly wealthy, well educated or involved in media to have a voice. If you can access a computer for some length of time, you can be heard.

 

But is this necessarily a good thing? Do we really need every Tom, Dick and Harry putting in their two cents about issues they have no idea about? Or even just wasting valuable gigabytes filling servers with vacuous conversations about So You Think You Can Survive Idol, punctuated by “lol”’s and “OMG”’s and “LMFAO”’s and seemingly endless permutations of the humble yellow smiley face? Is this a fair compromise?

 

A diligent Internet user has to wade through considerable quagmire to locate what they are after. Hidden somewhere beyond all the commercial Google hits like for eBay, who attempts to sell you whatever it is you entered as a search string, and all the advertisements for penis enlargements and porn and celebrity forums, may be what you are actually looking for.

 

In the end, it is ultimately the means to a selfish end for me. But perhaps one day something I say in future entries may strike a chord with someone. They may agree with me or change their way of thinking. Preferably they’ll disagree with me and may or may not endeavour to change my views on things. I may make someone angry. Might make someone interested in a subject or an issue they knew nothing about if only for the sole reason of rebutting or correcting me. And that’s gotta be good right?