As we delve into another energy-filled quarter at the MCDM, I am reflecting on a question that came up in multiple classes: How valuable is peer-produced – or “collectively produced” — content in this new age of Internet-based communication?
Many of us in the MCDM have taken on the challenge of reading through Yochai Benkler’s masterwork, The Wealth of Networks, a foundational text for any media program. Benkler makes the case that social production (collaborative content produced by widely distributed individuals, sometimes numbering in the thousands) is more effective and economically efficient than a centralized information production and distribution system that is controlled by a small number of organizations. Benkler backs up his arguments with several examples, such as the highly successful GNU/Linux open-source Web server software; Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia created and edited by thousands of Internet users; and the scientific experiment of NASA Clickworkers in which more than 80,000 public volunteers replaced a handful of scientists and graduate students to mark and classify Mars craters.
Google Africa project manager Fiona Lee addresses the crowd at TEDx Seattle. Photo by @stephenbrashear for MCDM
I spent all day Friday at the Pacific Science Center at the first-ever TEDx Seattle conference. For those of you unaware of TED, click here or just know that it’s the premier annual event where the world’s geniuses give inspirational, motivational talks about their respective fields.
I didn’t know what to expect at TEDx Seattle. I had only heard of one of the speakers before but despite my not knowing of them in advance, I was FLOORED by the quality and range of stories that they had to share.
Whereas TED brings the best of the world together, TEDx Seattle brought those on path to become the best. It felt like seeing Nirvana in 1989 or Lady Gaga in 2008 (Choose whichever is most relevant for you). You just knew you were seeing people on the brink of (if not already) renown success. Their stories were raw, emotional and inspiring.
While I was impressed throughout the day, I have to highlight five lectures that really stood out for me. I know others will have completely different lists or recall different anecdotes from the same speakers. That’s what makes the TEDx Seattle experience so rich! Read more…
Last week, Twitter finally announced the news the world had been waiting for: a revenue stream model. People were speculating for months how the social networking phenomenon would monetize itself, with hopes that there would be a profitable plan other than online advertising. Well, fanboys, you can put that dream to rest.
All good epics come in trilogy form. Here on Flip The Media, we began with Why I’m Not Buying an iPad This Weekend from my faculty colleague Kathy Gill. Then MCDM student Jeremy Snook sounded off on Why I Bought an iPad This Weekend. So I’ll wrap it up with my Return of the iPad (apologies JRR Tolkien). I took it back this evening (and paid the 10% restocking fee), though I had made the fateful decision this weekend when I left it behind with my family for two days and realized that I hadn’t missed it.
Most of my thoughts can be summarized in my review of the iPad last week on Seattle’s New Day Northwest:
This morning, @biz (Biz Stone) and @ev (Evan Williams) kicked off Twitter’s first official developer conference, Chirp, with some facts and data and a stunning announcement related to the Library of Congress.
First, the numbers. There are 105.8 million registered users but 180 million monthly unique visitors to the website. The deduction: non-registered users read tweets. And we know that registered users read tweets primarily from other devices. Williams noted that Twitter is currently handling 3 billion requests a day; this API-driven traffic is equivalent to Yahoo, he said, noting that no other major service is this distributed.
Social media has made today’s marketing less about controlling the message and more about asking questions. While Twitter and Facebook want to know what’s happening, Foursquare and other location-based social networks wonder, “Where are you?”
For those unfamiliar with Foursquare, the service lets users “check in” to a location via their smartphones or laptops and logs their positions on a map that others can see. The more you check in, the more badges and bragging rights you earn.
“The X-factor appeal of Foursquare is in its social currency,” says David Berkowitz, senior director of emerging media and innovation at digital agency 360i. “Giving Foursquare users these badges for completing explicit tasks adds an element of surprise, like a scavenger hunt.” The badges also help users show off their interests to others, enabling them to connect with like-minded people and keep the “game” going.
From such viral hits as I Can Has Cheezburger to helpful tools like Walk Score, hundreds of startup companies have their roots in Seattle’s thriving entrepreneurial community. This Q&A is the fifth in a series of interviews with Seattle-area startups.
Dave Schappell, Founder and CEO of TeachStreet
1. What is TeachStreet? TeachStreet helps people find classes–local or online–in hundreds of lifelong learning topics. Classes run the gamut from Spanish, piano, yoga and SEO to dog training, wine appreciation and more. If you want to learn it, we’ve got teachers and schools for you.
As a marketplace (like eBay), we help teachers and schools get more students by providing them with easy-to-use tools and services to promote their classes. We offer tools so that independent teachers can set up their classes and collect payment. And we also work with large nationwide class providers (such as Kaplan Test Prep) to generate student referrals.
Essentially, we built TeachStreet to create a place for people to explore their passions and help them enrich their lives through learning.
2. What are some interesting classes offered on TeachStreet?
Go in and search for the craziest things you can think of, and I bet we’ll have classes for you. Poker? Cat training? Hammered dulcimer? Swordfighting? All our learning categories are listed here.
3. How large is the TeachStreet community? We don’t disclose actual member numbers (teacher or student counts), but the website’s been live since April 21, 2008, and in just the last month we’ve had more than 170,000 visitors from more than 170 countries. The great majority of visitors are from the United States, since our local classes are currently restricted to the U.S. But online classes (added late in 2009) are starting to attract students worldwide. Read more…
Every year, thousands of bands, bloggers, filmmakers, social media gurus and entrepreneurs come to the South By Southwest Music, Film and Interactive festival in Austin, Texas. When I joined the MCDM program in 2008 and heard about SXSW, I started to work on plans to be actively involved. Sooner than expected I had the opportunity to participate on one of the music panels—and got to spend a week soaking in the latest in digital media, while enjoying entertainment and Southern hospitality. Attending SXSW was well worth the lessons, networking contacts and, sometimes, the free food.
Pitching a panel
Last November, at the Showbox in downtown Seattle, I met with the SXSW music committee, which was accepting submissions from bands, record labels, and anyone else who wanted to pitch an idea. For the past two years, I have been filming a documentary on legendary blues singer Huddie “Lead Belly” Ledbetter and using the MCDM program as a testing ground for the documentary’s online marketing and digital distribution strategies. I successfully pitched an MCDM-inspired panel based on the evolution of Lead Belly’s music from analog recordings to digital formats. Staying true to the digital storytelling code of honor, my presentation, “Lead Belly to Ludacris: From Analog to Digital,” included a video mash up I produced especially for the panel. The video mixed a rare performance of Lead Belly with hip-hop artist Ludacris covering a popular folk song. (You can read a review of my panel in the Austin Chronicle.)
Best of SXSW
In addition to presenting, I learned about a few innovative technologies and saw some great films at SXSW. Here are some of the highlights:
Many of us in the MCDM have taken on the challenge of reading through Yochai Benkler’s masterwork, The Wealth of Networks, a foundational text for any media program. Benkler makes the case that social production (collaborative content produced by widely distributed individuals, sometimes numbering in the thousands) is more effective and economically efficient than a centralized information production and distribution system that is controlled by a small number of organizations. Benkler backs up his arguments with several examples, such as the highly successful GNU/Linux open-source Web server software; Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia created and edited by thousands of Internet users; and the scientific experiment of NASA Clickworkers in which more than 80,000 public volunteers replaced a handful of scientists and graduate students to mark and classify Mars craters.
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Every year, thousands of bands, bloggers, filmmakers, social media gurus and entrepreneurs come to the 
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