A recent article on Tech Crunch caused me to start thinking about the concept of user generated ‘content’ and the pollution that this is causing on the web. Do we need to put in place some barriers to idiots posting their ‘thoughts’ online?

One of the attributes of so called web 2.0 is the notion of user generated content. However, can such a premise really work?

I (and countless numbers of others) use the web on a daily basis as a way to communicate but also as the ultimate information resource. A ‘living breathing’ encyclopaedia Britannica, it takes over the role of reference book, knowledgable co-worker and specialist interest magazine. But it can only do this if the content that it gives me is reliable and fairly accurate.

Accuracy has always been an issue with web content – but it is surprisingly easy to spot the obvious rubbish.

My concern is that we are moving to a place where we encourage uneducated, uninformed half wits to post their thoughts on-line. Whist such gibberish is easy to ignore, the shear volume of it is starting to pollute the web.

Producing good quality content is a skill, it makes you a publisher. Perhaps it is high time that we acknowledged this and started to value the authors and producers of good quality content.

(sitting here thinking just how ironic this post is!!! If you find yourself here reading it please add your voice to the irony too…)