Folksonomy and the Folks

The Internet is largely controlled by amateurs; it is at any user’s disposal and anyone can add to it. In fact, much of the information and entertainment we consumed was put out there by amateurs. It is easy for people to post information for others to see, so media consumers should know who posted it and trust it at their own risk. Entertainment in the media, however, is created by everyone who contributes to it. The technology that is available allows for anyone to use video, social networking, and all aspects of the entertainment that makes up our culture. One doesn’t need to be a professional to do it, which is a characteristic of today’s society.

            Youtube.com is an extremely popular video sharing website that anyone can create an account and upload a video to. Many videos gain popularity quickly and are viewed by millions of people. Many of the most viewed videos are uploads by everyday people and this is a huge source of entertainment. Through Youtube, we rely on amateurs to produce much of our entertainment and shift away from professionals doing this job. Anyone can edit or access it. Whether someone wants to see clips of the Super bowl from ten years ago or find a video on a research topic to use for a class, it is as easy as typing key words in the search box and the video appears. The downside to this type of availability is the consumer must really learn to filter what he or she watches and be able to look at it critically. Since anyone can add a video, users must watch and buy into the videos at their own discretion.

            The same is true for blogs, which are very powerful tools in that they can be used for discussion of any type of topic. They are helpful resources for gaining or expressing an opinion and connecting with others in a group setting from a class blog to a public blog created for fans of a television program. Like anything else that is on the Internet, the user must learn to look critically at what is on the blog. The source may not always be credible, which is why it is not recommended to trust information put out by amateurs for say a research paper. Often, while searching for information such as symptoms of an illness, it is easy to come across a blog or other site that anyone can edit. It is important, then, to recognize this risk when looking for truly legitimate facts. Fortunately, not anyone can edit a website for a school or government agency. There are standards for what is considered scholarly, and users must be aware of them.

            Although there is the risk of unprofessional information being added to the Internet, the collectiveness of sites such as blogs and video sharing has created a participatory democracy that anyone can contribute to. The amount of content on the Internet has grown beyond comprehension. I believe this fact, that Internet users are unified and given the freedom to share their thoughts and knowledge among each other, outweighs the fact that not all the information out there is trustworthy and legitimate. It has allowed for folksonomies, where the Internet community is made up of anyone who has something valuable to contribute to their society and engages all of its users in this participatory democracy. The amateurs that are creating content on the Internet are creating the entertainment that is the basis for today’s society.

Our culture craves things like hand-held cameras and reality television, and many needs for entertainment are, in part, met by someone’s Youtube video uploads. This is by no means undermining the higher quality and credibility of professional work. It is, however, allowing for more people to express themselves through their work and have more people see it. Comedy Central has a show called Tosh.0, in which host Daniel Tosh finds the most popular Youtube videos and other popular things in the media and talks about them. This shows that professional institutions recognize and accept the growth of amateur-made entertainment and its influence on society and are willing to use its penetration into the media as a platform.  The show The Office has a hand-held camera view, contrary to the traditional camera angle, which gives a feel that many viewers are familiar with. Amateurs like average Americans have a profound impact on what is in the media because they create their own forms of entertainment, and professionals take their ideas and run with them in order to relate to this audience. The participatory democracy will continue to grow with the availability and accessibility of technology because amateurs will continue to create.

Perhaps these people that are shaping the media aren’t all professionals or college educated, but they do have a crucial skill. To be able to use the technology at their disposal is imperative. In this digital age, being able to look something up online or create something on the computer is one of the most basic skills. Being technologically savvy is vital, especially because the world around us requires it more than ever. There will always be a need for professionals in so many fields such as medical, research, education and engineering. There are many things that simply cannot be done without adequate education. But the creation of the media is something that amateurs can and have accomplished. People are beginning to prefer the work of these amateurs, and professionals can either choose to comply with this change or risk losing popularity.