Hello and welcome to Super Cool Fun Happy Blog. Although a relatively unrelated title to content in which we will be discussing it serves a purpose to ‘attract eyeballs’. Eric Raymonds (cited in Bruns 2008, 02) theory of the power of eyeballs describes essentially that the power driven to create an economy in which essentially eyeballs are the currency of the new economy. That is, the principle in which the quality of software (or website) is directly related to the number of participants able to engage in the development process. Although I am not insinuating that eyeballs can be used as a cash exchange rather that within our digital society cluttered with eager and intelligent Gen C users we see an interest or popularity to engage, to read and to interact in an online environment. Therefore the more eyeballs directed to any particular site the more interest it will begin to generate and a higher potential for digital dollars. Now it is entirely speculative as to what digital dollars can mean. I use the term loosely to describe as a digital intangible currency. Now like our dramatically changing ways from and industrial society to a digital society we must also realise a shift in what we class as value. In old terms an editor at a large newspaper with many writers working under him ruling with an iron fist to meet deadline after deadline would conceive the notion of the industrial model. To be in such a position would include power, money and one would think a large tangible network of associates. The ‘New Economy’ answer to this is citizen journalism where (Bruns 2008, 80) defines, “online participatory journalism is fueled by people who fanatically follow and passionately discuss their favourite subjects. Their weblogs and online communities, while perhaps not as professionally produced, are chock full of style, voice and attitude. Passion makes the experience not only compelling and memorable but also credible”. I suggest that a citizen journalist who has a horde of loyal readers to her daily blog about celebrities and fashion would indeed have the same parallel power as the withering role of the former. Society is beginning to realise that the ways in which value can be defined. The social networking giant Facebook declined an offer of around $1 billion claiming that the net worth of the site was around $8 billion (Wikipedia, 2008). This makes one wonder the power derived essentially from the reach of these social networking tools. Is it therefore not possible to assume that the digital dollars in this case the vast number of people (eyeballs) involved in social networking is directly related to the monetary cash value of $8 billion. I could say that by simple calculation of Facebook’s worth ($8 billion) divided by their user base (69 million users) with equal the net worth of an individuals interest (around $115US). The simple ability of digital participation is therefore worth money. Is therefore the citizen journalist with her ability to attract the interest of the public the answer to the industrial version in the form of a newspaper? Focus has lead investors to procure and investigate into other avenues to increase their user base. It is evident that these alternative forms of communication such as social networking and citizen journalism are in fact the answer and often the preferred means.
Bruns, A. 2008. Produsage: Towards a Broader Framework for User-Led Content Creation.
Bruns, A. 12008. News Blogs and Citizen Journalism: Perpetual Collaboratio in Evaluating the News. In A. Bruns (Ed.), Blogs, Wikipedia, Second Life, and Beyond: From Production to Produsage, ed. A. Bruns, 69-100.
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Raymond, E. quoted in A.Bruns. 2008. Produsage: Towards a Broader Framework for User-Led Content Creation.
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Wikipedia. 2008. Facebook. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facebook (accessed March 29, 2008)
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