There was a time when I thought that the most promising aspects of the Internet was that, at least initially, everyone had the opportunity for equality. Isolated behind keyboards and one way screens it would be more about interests, knowledge and abilities. We would have opportunities to communicate ideas with both experts and novices without prejudgement’s. Yes, genuine communications without being tainted by irrelevant facts such as race, age or gender.
That was long ago and I was naive. Web 2.0, the Internet and the Blogosphere are just as driven by prejudices as the “real world.” In many cases communications are determined by social level or status with little tolerance for unpopular opinions. Many will not even discuss topics with you if they don’t know who you are and once they know who you are, opportunities for equality vanish.
Sounds like the real world to me. So we shouldn’t expect much more.
These are some late thoughts brought about by the recent “age and innovation” discussions (ref: Fred Wilson and Dave Winer). I have to agree with Shelly’s comments about why stop at just age if you want to have this discussion. If you’re going to open this can of worms then discuss the whole problem set? Maybe, real discussions can’t take place due to personal interest, prejudices and preformed opinions as hinted at in Kent’s post. It’s more about positioning then discussing.
Yes there was a time… But now, a little wiser and a lot sadder.
Technorati Tags: technology, deversity, venture+capital