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The media pundit's pundit. Written by NYC insider Jeff Jarvis, BuzzMachine covers news, media, journalism, and politics.

Blognostication

9 comments on Blognostication

Blognostication
: This season brings us another dollop of wisdom (read: half obviously obvious and half utterly out-of-thin-air-made up predictions) from Faith Popcorn. She says that, on the one hand, that fundamentalism will be mainstreamed. Oh, sure, after centuries, this will happen to be the year when the fundies take over? This, the time when fundamentalists of many stripes are also defined as terrorists. Bull. On the other hand, she says that porn will become the norm. Now that’s a consistent worldview. And on online she predicts:

Persona Propaganda — Google has created the concept of the “Public Resume” — a new kind of pervasive, email-able DigiTruth. Now that everybody can know everything about almost anyone, an industry will soon evolve to help you manage that public persona-creating the perfect online profile, optimizing your own Google search, giving us control over our digitized public identities.

Identity Terrorism — The most extreme from of “Persona Propaganda,” in which the Internet is used as a tool to malign a reputation, either of an individual or a corporation. This new kind of terrorism is bound to be an increasing problem in the years to come.

Profiling Paranoia — As our personal choices become part of the digital ether (iPod playlists, TiVo configurations, Amazon choices) we will become increasingly worried about how this data can be used. The upside: EGOnomical technology could match us to exciting content, information, even people. The downside: a new digital Gestapo could dictate all the content you see.

That’s all true today. I started the year as the 27th Jeff; I am now the third. Smears happen now: One guy complains about Nick Denton and before Nick can answer with the transcripts that prove him wrong, the snark spreads like flu. Paranoia? Plenty of that to go around.

9 responses to “Blognostication”

  1. Kate Avatar
    Kate

    Let’s not get carried away about the power of the internet. These notions rank right up there with “internet stalking”… the idea that you can be “terrorized” by emails for example. Let’s get real. And let’s avoid this linguistic borrowing of terms that should be reserved for genuine terrorism, genuine stalking. “Somebody sent me a hundred emails calling me an idiot” is not terrorism. It’s a _nuisance_.
    By the time someone has the skills required to glean meaningful information about individuals on the net – providing it even exists – they generally are among those who also know that any such information should be treated with suspicion and double checked for accuracy.
    In short, the medium has its own natural checks and balances.
    –

  2. Ron Mwangaguhunga Avatar
    Ron Mwangaguhunga

    Intriguing.

  3. OTB Avatar
    OTB

    “Identity Terrorism:”
    I disagree, Kate. It’s a dumb term, yes, but it is still very much alive–in the old days it was simply called “Yellow Journalism”. Despite all their self-congratulation to the contrary, many of the most influential bloggers out there are yellower than a canary; and yes, some even cross the line to “identity terrorism”. Andrew Sullivan’s a great example. His attack on Krugman today (In Denial II), the latest in a years-long vendetta, is intentionally misleading, factually incorrect, malicious, and potentially libelous.
    The difference between “YJ” and “Identity Terrorism” lies in the motivation. We talk about media that have this bias or that bias, but we’re usually talking about political bias of some sort; “Identity Terrorism” is personal–a hatred of someone or something so overwhelming that it defies all logic and reason. The Bush-hater crowd exhibits a lot of this online. Sullivan’s hysterical, seething hatred of Krugman is entirely personal, and can only lead one to assume that: 1) Sullivan desperately covets Krugman’s job, and therefore is intentionally trying to smear him and drive him out of work; 2) Sullivan is enraged that Krugman can command such high speaking fees. 3) Sullivan is simply a hate-filled asshole.
    Either way, it’s a sick show.

  4. Jaybird Avatar
    Jaybird

    Wow. That comment was, like, totally devoid of any self-reflection or irony.

  5. jon Avatar
    jon

    “Spreads like flu”??? You mean, spreads like RSS…

  6. Roger L. Simon Avatar
    Roger L. Simon

    You made me do it. I’m the 14th “roger.” Definitely too much blogging. (Now if could only get rid of “wilco” and “ebert”…)

  7. Andy Freeman Avatar
    Andy Freeman

    > The difference between “YJ” and “Identity Terrorism” lies in the motivation.
    False.

  8. old maltese Avatar
    old maltese

    O —
    ‘intentionally misleading, factually incorrect, malicious, and potentially libelous’
    ‘hysterical, seething hatred’
    No, Andrew Sullivan is a polemicist. It’s an honorable calling.

  9. Yehudit Avatar
    Yehudit

    Faith Popcorn was the one who said that at the turn of the millenium we would all be cocooning. Meanwhile people flocked to restaurants, movie theaters, and other public spaces. I don’t have much faith in Faith.