Friday, 13 February 2009
Topic 3 week 4 d
Unlike Kallok and Smith suggests that lurkers are not useful because they do not “contribute” to online discussions and some writers even suggesting they are "harassing" (Inkine, 353: 1998). It is my opinion that these beliefs are over the top and the idea of booting them out of an online community seems unfair. As within school there are those that are more expressive in debates and who have a greater confidence to put their message across. Although it has been suggested that there is greater confidence online, the confidence of these lurkers may not have reached the point that will enable them to comment. If people online want their message to be herd, then banning online lurkers wouldn’t this just reduce the producers and writers audience?
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I see your point, but doesn't it depend upon whether the 'community' is outward looking or not? And if it is barely managing to sustain itself, it may believe that that is because people are treating it as a 'free' commercially produced information/entertainment source, rather than a 'club' of produsers?
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