Monthly Archives: March 2012

The masses, composed of large contributors and minimal contributors, make up Wikipedia. So it makes sense if I were to say that Wikipedia is the measuring stick for all things popular and valid to the world. A statement that spoke volumes to me from chapters 5, 6, and 7 in “Here Comes Everybody” was that Wikipedia and all wikis, grow if enough people care about them, and they die if they don’t.

When I read that statement, I thought back to a Wikipedia page I saw once and it was about an unsigned singer that was solely featured on YouTube but only I knew about him and a small group of my friends knew about him so I was very surprised to see that he had made it on Wikipedia. It made me think that there may be a larger following of him than I had believed. Then I checked today, and the article no longer exists. This is when I realized that Wikipedia could easily be seen as the measuring stick for all things popular (and valid) to the world. The majority of the world is not aware of some things and therefore, the Wikipedia page remains without a large defending and supporting crowd, leading to its eventual disappearance.

Is Wikipedia the new judge of what is popular and valid in the world?

After reading the first three chapters of “Here Comes Everybody,” I have realized that the speed of news has changed dramatically.

Information regarding anything going on in the world is at our fingertips now, no matter where we are or what the information is. Whether you are telling the world to look out for someone that has something of yours, sharing the recent baseball game’s highlights, or talking about the death of a popular figure in the world, it all has become available and I think that has its advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage is that with it immediately available, we learn about things quicker. We don’t have to wait for news from the other side of the world to pass through news reporters and other media sources so they can tell us, we can find out with a few presses of our keyboard or our phones.

The disadvantage is that if we trust the wrong sources, the information can be unreliable. This is the reason an “amateur” is not a “professional.” Generally, a professional is considered more reliable because they have earned that title through consist quality information that is from quality sources, like direct ones. An amateur may not have those same sources available to them and their information may be better suited as rumor unless properly supported by sources too.

With all the new media available to the public, information seen from the masses may not always be true. Despite the new speed of news, information should be looked into before it is spread, you never know who will believe it.

For those who are football fans…how many trusted THIS source?

Support your statements and you’ll earn credibility, no matter how fast the information is reported, if it’s false, you will tear your credibility to shreds, no matter how famous you are.