Ruling the World as an Information Aggregator

| | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (3)

aTypical Joe sent me a post heralding the hegemony of Google, or at least, of Google-like companies which aggregate our individual information.



I don't agree, and yet I am not certain that I am able to articulate clearly why (a good sign that I may not understand it well myself). Nonetheless, here goes:



Aggregation of information seems to be in itself, an democratizing tool. Unless there is only one aggregator (and there is not), the marketplace itself will correct abuses, for reasons comparable to why collusions do not work in the airline industry or the oil industry, among others. The time when if one provider ignored a story it would die are over.



Let us ask: Suppose Google were to blot out every mention of another aggregator: Yahoo! to pick the next biggest. As the public discovered the blockage (the lack of information) they re-route themselves to Yahoo!'s advantage and Google's disadvantage in order to get more information (value).



Suppose Google and Yahoo! agreed to carve the internet up between them. Then Ask Jeeves or MSN would be the winner, free to provide service on anything to anybody, and so on. There are a large number of well-known aggregators of information. I can name at least three more general search engines without breaking a sweat, not to mention Technorati, Ice Rocket, Blogrolling, etcetera, and new ones are coming on line almost daily.



Suppose they all get together? That just makes the rewards sweeter to the first one to break ranks.



Finally, the modern infosphere works to a large extent, off personal connections and site issues. I've only been here in the infosphere for about four months, but if I want to find out something I've already got a pretty good idea who makes a habit of covering what. If I want to get the information out, I don't go to an aggregator, I give it to somebody who makes a habit of reporting on it, be it me for Real Estate and Investing, Decision 08 for the 2008 presidential politics, SCOTUS Blog, Michelle Malkin, Captain's Quarters, Dean's World, or what have you, all the way up the line to Instapundit. Nobody is beyond fact-checking and eveybody can do fact checking, and if it's good, worthwhile information, somebody will pick it up, at which point we're all off to the races because once somebody has picked it up, anybody competing with them will pick it up (if only to debunk their competition), and then anybody who's mildly interested links and offers their take. You can no more intentionally contain it than you can hold water in a sieve. The question is not "Can it get out without the aggregators?" but only how many steps and how much work it needs to get it out. If it happens to Glen Reynolds, or any of the mass media types, it's out already. If it starts with any of the other A listers, it doesn't take much. The further down the information pyramid you start, the harder it gets, but you can get it out.



Paradoxically enough, the aggregators power depends upon them not using it for any purpose except what that which it was originally acquired for, i.e. the dissemination of said information. When they start imposing editorial slants of their own is when they start losing market share for being less than completely reliable. Which makes sense of a sort if you look at most of the legacy media, which is still living in a world that has since changed, when they had control over what the average citizen in their city heard about, a world that no longer applies. They're in the business of information dissemination to make money, not to rule the world, and although the two are not unrelated, their method of attracting money leaves them vulnerable to any attempt on their part to actually use their aggregating power for some Purpose other than making money. It was harder when you had a limited number of choices fifty years ago. Now, if disseminator A doesn't cover it, not only to you go to someone who will, but the aggregate of information seekers becomes less likely to seek A out, penalizing A for failing to get the story. These days, nobody is separated by more than the time it takes to click a bookmark or in extreme cases, run a search engine or six, which sure puts a crimp in the ability to restrict the free flow of information, as a Canadian judge found out when he put a gag order on the canadian press, only to have Captain's Quarters pick up on it in the US where canadians could look at it to their heart's content. Or What Armies of Liberation is doing to Yemen right now.



The thing which wields power today is something like credibility, which is a function of the audience you have, the audience you can get, and how credible you are to your core and extended audiences. It's great if Glen Reynolds reads your site everyday, but if he (or someone comparable) doesn't, odds are much better that someone they read does.



The reason that identified disseminators have an inherent advantage over anonymous ones in the minds of the audience as the one who stands out in plain sight and has to answer for errors, whether by embarrassment or something stronger, is instantly more credible than anybody anonymous who can theoretically vanish back into the woodpile with no-one the wiser. This is why, IMHO, of the top 100 members of the 'sphere, you have to go down to Jawa Report (#40 right now) to find one who is even semi-anonymous, and although I'm not familiar with all of them, I can't name one of the top 100 in the Ecosystem who is run by someone truly anonymous (Juan non-Volokh has fellow-bloggers standing out in their own names who know exactly who "Juan" is, and I believe the others would "out" Juan in an instant if he abused his anonymity).



Categories

Delicious Bookmark this on Delicious StumbleUpon Toolbar Stumble It!

3 TrackBacks

Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: Ruling the World as an Information Aggregator.

TrackBack URL for this entry: http://searchlightcrusade.net/mt/mt-tb.cgi/1970

» They don't work for us from aTypical Joe: A gay New Yorker living in the rural south.

Dan is cool to my thoughts of a utopian corporate state that aggregates our preferences into a more perfect post-democratic governing structure. Google was mentioned in my post, less as a model than an inspiration. As it happens, Seth Finkelstein... Read More

» Carnival of Liberty XVII from Eric's Grumbles Before The Grave

Welcome to the 17th edition of the Carnival of Liberty. We've had this going for just about 4 months now. The first edition was on July 4th, 2005, the 229th anniversary of the unanimous Declaration of Independence of the 13... Read More

» Carnival Of The Vanities #162 from Baboon Pirates

Welcome to Baboon Pirates and the 162nd Carnival Of The Vanities! My nom de blog is El Capitan, and I'll be the ringmaster/sideshow operator/skeevy carny for this week's festivities. Read More

1 Comments

aTypical Joe said:

I see that by conflating 2 thoughts into 1 idea I wasn't as clear as I might have been. The one you addressed, corporate domination, or what I referred to as the age of the corporate state, would not play out in my scenario as a single corporation, but rather several multinationals all overlapping and playing some aggregating role.

Now what are they aggregating? The preferences, opinions, personal connections and all the rest of the minutia of our daily lives. And for what purpose? To make decisions for us.

In this formulation I reduce everything down to 2 problems with democracy as it is practiced now. One is that our electoral lives are too complex. We simply cannot be well informed on all of the issues that we are asked to vote on. So instead of voting on the complexities that matter, we vote on the special interest we understand.

The second problem is that we cannot make difficult long-term interest decisions that may hurt our short-term interest. Or that call for one area of sacrifice while another does not. New Orleans is an example I think. Flu vaccines another.

The founding fathers remedied much of this with representative democracy and restricted voting. We have moved more and more to direct democracy. But much as we want our say on pretty much everything, we don’t want all the work that comes with it. Most of the people I know couldn’t care less about many issues that they see as very far away. So they seed their vote to others who pay more attention, or use it by voting from habit, particular interest, or chance.

I agreee with your observations on the blogosphere. As a whole, it works quite well. It’s a model I’d like to see extended.

Please be civil. Avoid profanity - I will delete the vast majority of it, usually by deleting the entire comment. To avoid comment spam, a comments account is required. They are freely available, and you can post comments immediately. Alternatively, you may use your Type Key registration, or sign up for one (They work at most Movable Type sites) All comments made are licensed to the site, but the fact that a comment has been allowed to remain should not be taken as an endorsement from me or the site. There is no point in attempting to foster discussion if only my own viewpoint is to be permitted. If you believe you see something damaging to you or some third party, I will most likely delete it upon request.
Logical failures (straw man, ad hominem, red herring, etcetera) will be pointed out - and I hope you'll point out any such errors I make as well. If there's something you don't understand, ask.
Nonetheless, the idea of comments should be constructive. Aim them at the issue, not the individual. Consider it a challenge to make your criticism constructive. Try to be respectful. Those who make a habit of trollish behavior will be banned.

Leave a comment

Copyright 2005-2024 Dan Melson All Rights Reserved

Search my sites or the web!
 
Web www.searchlightcrusade.net
www.danmelson.com


The Book on Mortgages Everyone Should Have
What Consumers Need To Know About Mortgages
What Consumers Need To Know About Mortgages Cover

The Book on Buying Real Estate Everyone Should Have
What Consumers Need To Know About Buying Real Estate
What Consumers Need To Know About Buying Real Estate Cover

Buy My Science Fiction and Fantasy Novels!
Dan Melson Amazon Author Page
Dan Melson Author Page Books2Read

Links to free samples here

The Man From Empire
Man From Empire Cover
Man From Empire Books2Read link

A Guardian From Earth
Guardian From Earth Cover
Guardian From Earth Books2Read link

Empire and Earth
Empire and Earth Cover
Empire and Earth Books2Read link

Working The Trenches
Working The Trenches Cover
Working the Trenches Books2Read link

Rediscovery 4 novel set
Rediscovery set cover
Rediscovery 4 novel set Books2Read link

Preparing The Ground
Preparing the Ground Cover
Preparing the Ground Books2Read link

Building the People
Building the People Cover
Building the People Books2Read link
Setting The Board

Setting The Board Cover

Setting The Board Books2Read link



Moving The Pieces

Moving The Pieces Cover
Moving The Pieces Books2Read link

The Invention of Motherhood
Invention of Motherhood Cover
Invention of Motherhood Books2Read link



The Price of Power
Price of Power Cover
Price of Power Books2Read link

The End Of Childhood
End Of Childhood cover
The End of Childhood Books2Read link

The Fountains of Aescalon
Fountains of Aescalon Cover
The Fountains of Aescalon Books2Read link



The Monad Trap
Monad Trap Cover
The Monad Trap Books2Read link

The Gates To Faerie
Gates To Faerie cover
The Gates To Faerie Books2Read link

Gifts Of The Mother
Gifts Of The Mother cover
Gifts Of The Mother Books2Read link
**********


C'mon! I need to pay for this website! If you want to buy or sell Real Estate in San Diego County, or get a loan anywhere in California, contact me! I cover San Diego County in person and all of California via internet, phone, fax, and overnight mail. If you want a loan or need a real estate agent
Professional Contact Information

Questions regarding this website:
Contact me!
dm (at) searchlight crusade (dot) net

(Eliminate the spaces and change parentheticals to the symbols, of course)

Essay Requests

Yes, I do topic requests and questions!

If you don't see an answer to your question, please consider asking me via email. I'll bet money you're not the only one who wants to know!

Requests for reprint rights, same email: dm (at) searchlight crusade (dot) net!
-----------------
Learn something that will save you money?
Want to motivate me to write more articles?
Just want to say "Thank You"?

Aggregators

Add this site to Technorati Favorites
Blogroll Me!
Subscribe with Bloglines



Powered by FeedBlitz


Most Recent Posts
Subscribe to Searchlight Crusade
http://www.wikio.com

About this Entry

This page contains a single entry by Dan Melson published on October 18, 2005 7:34 PM.

Harriet Miers Supreme Court Nomination - An Epiphany was the previous entry in this blog.

Links and Minifeatures 10 19 Wednesday is the next entry in this blog.

Find recent content on the main index or look in the archives to find all content.

-----------------
Advertisement
-----------------

My Links