Shanghai Yummy

In thinking more about the impact of the net and the potential to change society, I came across some examples of how individuals empowered themselves by congregating on the Internet into a powerful lobby that previously did not exist. In 1998, I started searching the net for travel advice and information, and it wasn't long before I stumbled upon FlyerTalk. At the time, I flew about 25,000 to 50,000 miles per year, and had done so off and on since 1992, mostly because of trips to and from Asia to visit my parents. At first, I kind of lurked and gleaned some advice from the people who posted there. Sometimes, it was just people coming on to tell their stories about getting an upgrade, or good service, or bad service, or what have you. But from these assorted stories emerged a collective knowledge base. Now I was actually using some of this new knowledge in my dealings with the airlines, and hotels. And after a while I was able to start offering some of that knowledge back.

Then a funny thing happened... the group started getting widespread attention. Not just from other Internet users, but from the travel industry itself. And then, from national media. Suddenly people who had control over rules and policies within the travel industry were paying attention to what was being said on FlyerTalk. Now we weren't just sharing knowledge; we were affecting change and becoming a powerful voice.

I'm sure this isn't an isolated case. The net has allowed people who were once disparate individuals separated not only physically by many miles, but also socially and geopolitically by national borders, class, age, and more, to come together in a common forum and affect change in one area through the power of their collective voice.

There's very little holding back a revolution in the way people interact with one another, and affect the society and economy around them. There is still time, and, the means is still available. We just have to be careful about what we allow to happen to this digital world, because what happens in cyberspace affects realspace in a very direct way.

PGP Signed Entry