Blogs and online sources

1. Reuters has a blog on retail issues called Shop Talk.

2. Project for Public Spaces has sadly dropped their topic focused email lists and forums (e.g., on Public Markets) but has replaced them with a "social network" called the Placemaking Movement, which includes a blog.

3. I am working up a blog entry called "Open Source, Maximarketing, Participation and Democracy" on some of the issues with social networking and social media. For "producers" of content, there can be different issues than for non-producing consumers of content. I have a problem with using social networking tools for what we might think of as polling or outbound communication, while not distinguishing between the levels of access and influence that may or may not be provided.

Open source as a movement enables participation by those able to participate. In fact, six years ago or so when I first read the classic paper on open source software development, "The Cathedral and the Bazaar" I was struck by the paper's relevance to the issues of participatory democracy.

But calling any technology, such as the polling methods touted by organizations like America Speaks, "open source" or "open source democracy" misses a fundamental point, that constraining the boundaries within which people are "allowed" to participate/comment restricts democracy, doesn't add to it, unless you believe that the number of people ostensibly participating through surveys is more important than the how and why of participation.

Polling is being substituted for democracy, and the use of online technology does not in and of itself qualify as the promotion of democracy.

That being said, it's great that the DC regional transit system, WMATA, is introducing Twitter feeds to alert people about delays. See "Metro 'tweets' rail service delay information." While I think that's great, does it strengthen participatory democracy? No, but it is helpful nonetheless. And more importantly, it provides multiple ways for people to receive/consume the information that they want ("Maximarketing"). From the press release:

The brief messages, or tweets, are a quick and easy way for riders to get basic, yet immediate information about Metrorail service online or on their cell phones. Messages on Twitter are restricted to 140 characters. For example, a message may read, “Blue-Orange: Expect delays to New Carrollton and Largo Town Center due to emergency track maintenance at Cheverly station.” Individuals must sign up to receive Metro tweets at www.twitter.com/metroopensdoors. The service is free to Web users. Customers who use SMS may incur text messaging charges from their phone service providers.

I have been thinking about this because of WMATA's release of information to Google Transit. See "Metro "punts": Will release transit schedule data for Google and others" from Greater Greater Washington and "Upgrading Transit's Interface: Metro Releases Google Transit Data" from the Post.

Now for me, I am content to use the RideGuide function on the WMATA website, it works great, and in all likelihood, it will be better/more robust than what Google can provide. But that doesn't matter to the people who prefer the Google option and will prefer it forever, regardless of which one is simpler or more robust. Maximarketing (see the book by Rapp and Collins) is about using all marketing channels maximally. It's not about what we prefer, but what the customer prefers.