Comments on The Lovable Rogue: The CEO and the Cesspool; Consumer Created Misinfo...

I honestly couldn't agree more Danny. Personally,...

2008-10-11T19:04:00.000+01:00

I honestly couldn't agree more Danny. Personally, I think user generated content is fantastic. Although I don't use Youtube myself, I think that what it repesents is fantastic; that being a hub for users to express themselves. I found Schmidt's comments truly surprising. Surely deeming the produce of one's customers 'a cesspool of misinformation' reflects poorly on the organisation's own product offerings?

Perhaps Schmidt's comments were simply a means of appeasing a bitter crowd; let us not forget that Google's meteoric rise has come at the cost of the more tradition media. Who knows. In either case though, I would far rather side with my customers than with those organisations that lack the capacity to embrace a clear societal shift. Traditional media holds little contemporary value; publishers should realise that and create a presence within the new media.

As always, thanks for the comment Danny.

It's ironic that the CEO of Google came out with t...

2008-10-11T18:52:00.000+01:00

It's ironic that the CEO of Google came out with these comments, when Google itself is guilty of adding to this "cesspool" with its own acquisitions:

1. Feedburner - once a great tool for monitoring blog traffic and subscribers, now a broken shadow of its former self (how long does it take to get an email subscription form sorted out?).

2. AOLb - does anyone still use any of AOL's services? Its IM used to be one of the best - now even social media Im's are just as effective.

3. Youtube - admittedly can be pretty entertaining, but the majority of videos on there now are either puerile, voyeuristic titillation or inane dross.

4. Chrome - enough said...

It's all very well commenting on the state of the Internet, but when you play a big part in how "cesspool-like" it is, it may be a better approach simply to stay silent. Stones and glass houses, anyone?