Web 2.0 Summit

I looked at Kevin Rose's arguments about starting a start-up in a bad economy.  I wanted to see how this wunderkind operates and what he had to say about the topic.  I also looked at The web and politics because I am fascinated by the way the web is altering communication, especially in terms of political and social action.  An even larger umbrella term for what is happening is the democratization of information.  

The Kevin Rose presentation was much shorter than the political presentation, but was none-the-less informative about how start-ups form and the kinds of resources that are available for people interested in doing so.  

Rose described how Digg did not launch during the real web 2.0 explosion and how that helped them in terms of not having much competition for the first 6-8 months.  He called it the first mover advantage.  Rose talked about the funding for consumer Internet start-ups will be drying up a bit, at least in the short-term.  This is actually an opportunity to gain that first-mover advantage.  Its much more difficult to launch a new company when that particular sector of the market is being flooded with new companies.    

Rose did not quit his day job when he founded Digg.  He outsourced his web programming to Europe and ended up paying 1/3rd of what he would have had to pay someone from the U.S.  Its interesting to see this kind of effect of globalization.  Even high-tech related fields can be outsourced as opposed to the traditional notion of manufacturing being the primary beneficiary of outsourcing.  Rose also rented servers for $99 a month, the cheapest route and did not suffer any problems or setbacks.  I think that he is certainly on to something here.  It may be more difficult to get funding, but if you can attain it success will be much more likely due to the lack of competition.  

There was not a lot of overlap in terms of subject matter between the two presentations. However, DIGG is firmly part of Web 2.0 now and is part of the New Media that is transforming the nature of politics itself.  Because DIGG aggregates is can have an article from the Huffington Post or the Drudge Report.  DIGG can enhance the reach of these blogs, which can in turn have the kinds of influences we have seen in the recent presidential campaign.  

John Heilermann of New York magazine moderated a panel which included Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post, Gavin Newsom mayor of San Francisco, and Joe Trippi a political consultant.  Heilermann compared the 2008 election to the 1960 election because they shared something in common.  What they shared in common was the maturation of a medium that altered the political landscape irrevocably.  In 1960 of course the debates between JFK and Nixon were the first to be televised, and in 2008 the web really reached a level of maturity in terms of its influence on the political world.  

Trippi agreed and said that in 2003-2004 the web hadn't quite reached its zenith in terms of influence.  There was no youtube and facebook hadn't opened up to everyone.  Since then broadband users increased and a whole new slew of tools emerged.  14.5 million hours of official Obama video was watch on youtube.  That's exposure that Obama didn't have to pay for like he would have in a broadcast model.  He also didn't have to interrupt programming.  People that had a serious interest could go watch videos at their leisure.  

Newsom described the web as "fundamentally shifting the construct of what we believe is possible in this country."  I could not agree with Newsom more.  

Huffington of course agreed as well, stating that Barack Obama would not be president or even have been a Democratic nominee if it weren't for the web.  She argued that the net killed Karl Rove politics.  People had access to the truth through the blogosphere and youtube and were less susceptible to the kind of fear mongering that defeated John Kerry in 2004.  

Huffington also brought up an interesting but somewhat unrelated point about how many quote unquote left wing issues are now mainstream.  Issues such as:  global warming, health care, and ending the war in Iraq.  Huffington said that "the truth does not always lie in the middle."  She called Obama the new center and talked about how she envisions the Huffington Post as new journalism, not right vs. left, but what is true.  Trippi agreed that the msm focuses he said she said journalism, but the blogosphere and related tools allow the individual to decide on their own.  He poingnantly altered James Carville's "its the economy stupid" by stating "its the network stupid."  I think that Trippi nailed it on the head with that quote.  He also astutely pointed out that youtube demands authenticity. 

Newsom described that politicians are behind the curve in terms of social media and the web.  They realize how it alters and improves fundraising, but not much beyond that.  He talks about facebook and how it has changed the audiences that show up. 

This panel really excited me.  I am a firm believer that the web has irrevocably altered and will continue to alter the structure of politics in the world.  It has empowered individuals like nothing we have ever seen in the history of mankind.  It is an exciting time to be alive.