"We copied THEIR pattern"

Clay Shirky is one of my favorite authors and speakers. As always, he puts together a "must watch" presentation for anyone dealing with social media and the democratization of information. Today his latest TED Talk on social media, which was given at the US State Department last month, was pushed live. In it Clay talks about the way that patterns for technology use are being transferred from places like Africa. He uses the example of FrontlineSMS being used by civilians to monitor elections in Nigeria, and how we finally see that same type of activity in the US. It's transfer from the developing world to the developed world.

"These tools don't get socially interesting until they get technologically boring"

My favorite part (around 6:00):

"Members of the former audience can now also be producers and not consumers. Every time a new consumer joins this new media landscape, a new producer joins as well, because the same equipment; phones, computers, lets you consume and produce. It's as if when you bought a book they threw the printing press in for free. It's as if you had a phone that could turn into a radio if you pressed the right buttons. That is a HUGE change in the media landscape."

Convening and supporting groups

One of the major points that Clay makes is that this new medium is about convening and supporting groups, not controlling them. As we build Ushahidi we challenge ourselves with this same foundational principal. How can we build a platform that has the lowest barrier to entry? One where it's so basic that anyone can take part. One where it can grow beyond our vision? What can we create that will allow this convening to happen in places where it hasn't been possible to do it digitally before?