Naked Again

Scoble and Israel fine-tune their points in a more realistic second half in Naked Conversations. They continue to assert the utility of the revolutionary tool of blogging, but they also point to arguments against it. Even though I don’t agree with the blogging is sublime mentality the authors assign, I give them credit for showing both sides.

Several anti-bloggers maintain that the communication tool is not for every company, (something I agree with as well) and also believe that not every person would communicate effectively given a blog. If a person does not communicate competently the results can invalidate the blog’s goal for transparency. One bad communicator can sever a company’s credibility built by more proficient company bloggers.

Scoble and Israel step across the lines of the pervasively free range medium to assert guidelines should be followed so one is not “Dooced” or fired from their job for blogging in a irresponsible way. I find this a little hard to swallow. I understand it’s most likely not a smart idea to leak details on hardware your company is about to launch, but the idea of a censored blog doesn’t fit into the very model Scoble and Israel have been illustrating throughout their book.

If transparency is key, how can there be rules? The idea of creating guidelines, even within the confines of one company, seems extremely difficult. A CEO could feel obliged to limit regulations and a new exec could feel quite differently. I also don’t like the authors’ idea of pushing the limits to see how far a blogger could go to make their company more transparent. As a person who has been laid off twice before reaching the 30 year-old milestone (read: eToys and Smithsonian Books), I’m extremely sensitive to this idea. I’m all for free speech, but I also like to know where my next meal is coming from.

I am also a person who’s main job is to protect intellectual property. I see the world of blogging as a land mine of legal issues. While I enjoy the free exchange of ideas in a new technological media, I also see the potential for its ill-use.

Technology will continue to transform and amaze all of us, and we will hopefully utilize it for what is appropriate for each one of our own goals. What is most important is the new technology be embraced with the same energy and passion as blogging has been for Scoble and Israel.