Semantic Web: The Beauty and the Beast
In the old newspaper days, respectable publications would have clear policies that would state impartiality criteria and the objectivity of content provided,
Except for political titles which embed ideologies into editorial policies, what distinguishes good journalism from other types of writing is the ability to provide impartial, informed, objective and verified content
Then came the 'infomercial' and 'advertorial' age.
Publications had to sell out some of their integrity, and disguise their compromises: stories looked like articles, when they were actually adverts (this is an advert was clearly stated in minute words at the bottom of the item)
What a trick eh.
Then came the multimedia age, audiences became increasingly confused by flashy formats and stunning presentations, and the value of the information provided became secondary to the gloss.
Now most commercial press is marketing, and most journalism is commercial press, let's admit it.
At last , the internet fuelled the hopes of information seekers, journalists and publishers alike.
A public space where truths could be told black on white, where commercial constraints could be minimal, where publishers could sustain unbiased publications without having to bend - not too much - to the law of the advertiser.
An now there are blogs, personal accounts and diaries to complement the news with real first hand information.
But while newspapers publishers and editors tend to warrant for what they publish with their integrity (or lack thereof), internet users are the mercy of search engines and algorithms.
Hm. Anonymous attributeless central scrutinizers rule.
That may be both a good and a bad thing, depending on what turn it takes.
Admittedly, Google plays a large role in information retrieval on the internet
Its powerful search algorithm and indexing capabilities allow users to crawl the web to locate even the remotest documents related to the search key words.
We all use it.
Last but not least the 'news' feature, and so many have taken to gmail, both still in beta release but widely adopted.
The latest Google toolbar now is making people feel uncomfortable.
The concept underlying the
'Semantic Web' is now being used by the commercial machine.
Something needs to be added to the work group papers to that effect: the semantic web may need a built in mechanism to counter commercial bias if the internet is to remain a tool for public knowledge and the advancement of society.
It doesn't mean that the internet shouldn't be used for business.
But users should demand crystal clear policies that mark the distinction between information and advertising.
It will take some educating the public about information ethics.
Since search engines have become dominant in the life of most net citizens, and since the internet is where most of future media life is going to take place, there is pressure.
Now Google is a public company.
New pressure is to satisfy shareholders.
There are a few possible scenarios ahead:
Google will become a giant internet commercial machine, and its faithful users who have loved it from the beginning will be disappointed and move elsewhere to find impartiality in their searches, as fastsearch is just waiting in the line to take centrestage
or
it will attempt to maintain its scientific integrity and separate its commercial activities labelling anything which is not algorithmically unbiased with a clear, prominent and explicita statements (THIS IS ADVERTISING, SOMEBODY PAID TO GET THIS INFO TO YOU)
Either way, newer generation of information users should be educated about the distinction, and quality information parameters should be developed and instilled into the newest generations of cyberculture.
THIS IS NOT AN ADVERT
Delicious
Digg
Reddit
Magnoliacom
Newsvine
Furl
Google
Yahoo
Technorati
Comments
Post new comment