Do You Believe In A Flat Social Media Earth?

One of the mantras of Social Media advocates is the flattening effect. You don’t need a business card – Social Media gives you a direct line. In this way, yes, I feel that the world is the flattest that it has been since Copernicus came on the scene.

But still, things – and people – are not all equal.

I’ve seen so many people who profess the notion of flattening on Twitter, but when it comes to putting steak on the plate – when you want to talk to them or get them involved in something – they want to be on more than an equal footing with everyone else. They demand special treatment and special slots so that they don’t have to mingle with what they might as well call the ‘proletariat attendees’.

Andrew Keen says very well that authenticity is the new power. But I often wonder whether this authenticity is itself staged.

What really impressed me was talking to the keynote speakers at Like Minds. I had phone calls with them all, and was astounded at how ‘flat’ they really were. No special requests regarding who they would and wouldn’t talk to. Happy to run lunchtime conversations with 10 people they probably don’t know.

Lloyd Davis said something very profound: “Tuttle isn’t for everyone, but it is for anyone.” Amen.

People-to-people means that while we understand what we’re doing isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, and that we can’t see everyone or speak to everyone, we are for anyone, and have time for anyone.