BLOG ARCHIVES:
- 2012
- 2011
- 2010
- 2009
- 2008
RECENTLY ON TOL:
TOL Our Town
- A tumblr site dedicated to the people and places that make up Oregon and Southwest Washington.
TAGS:
Real Names Rule!
One of the working titles for this show was Town Square, and even though the name has changed, the ethos and echoes of the "town square" remain. It stands for a certain sense of civic engagement — of a real place, where people can meet to talk about the issues of the day. Crucially, in this real place, these are real people: people with real faces, and real histories, and real names.
And then there's the internet.
Among the many "benefits" of the internet — like free pornography, vast genealogy, and instant Google-ology — one of the most dubious has been pervasive anonymity. It seemed like a good idea at the time, conferring a sense of freedom that let us be ourselves — or, perhaps, change ourselves. But over the last few years many sites have realized that if you want to create a cohesive community where people take responsibility for their own words, anonymity can stand in the way of human interactions.
If you go to Amazon.com right now, for example, you'll see Real Name reviews all over the place. And if you go to the comment sections of WestportNow.com, a community news site from Connecticut, you'll see nothing but real names; they require them. As Amazon puts it,
An author willing to sign his or her real-world name on a piece of content is essentially saying 'With my real-world identity, I stand by what I have written here.'
That's exactly what we're hoping for — online and on the air. Our goal is that the comments and conversations on Think Out Loud will be civil and respectful, even when — or especially when — there's more disagreement than common ground. We do have commenting rules to help ensure that there's an explicit set of guidelines for this site. But you'll notice that, unlike WestportNow.com, signing in with your real name is not a requirement. Think of it as a strong suggestion — and the first step toward creating what we hope will become a fertile, feisty, and honest community.
And if none of the preceding was convincing, consider this: It's not going to be fun for me to come on the air saying things like "We got a great comment from Beaverfan1997, who wrote that..." or "ZarkonFOREVER couldn't agree more." I'm guessing it wouldn't make for great listening, either.
[Photo credit: Jeff Werner / Flickr / Creative Commons]
-
I have been protesting since late last year OPB's change to ATC. I WORK FOR A LIVING and cannot listen until 5pm. Therefore, I cannot hear ON THE RADIO, the last 25% of ATC. OPB says everyone else wants to hear MarketPlace INSTEAD of ATC. I don't buy it. They tell me to listen to ATC on the Internet. I say, LISTEN TO MARKETPLACE ON THE INTERNET and leave ATC -- a flagship program -- available on the radio for working people. What do YOU think?
-
I have never been a fan of Marketplace, I would often turn the radio off until Oregon Considered or ATC comes on . . . so i was excited to have Marketplace moved.
That said, this is hardly the place for your comment. besides, look at it another way . . . I shouldered the terrible yoke of Marketplace at 4:30 for years, now you can buck up and take your turn. Thanks in advance.
Ethan -
Your "real name" bit confuses me. I gave my real name when I registered, yet my comment shows only my username - a shorthand, single "word" for signing in (If I used my name I'd have to remember if I capitalized the first letter of each name and if there's a space, underscore or whatever). Moreover, unless you are willing to confirm real names it won't work. So, you are asking for real names in your form, publish those with comment, and to keep folks honest spot check registrants to make sure they are accurate.
-
Sorry for the confusion.
First off, this is only a suggestion... or call it a hope. We're not going to confirm names, and we're not going to spot check registrants. (To be perfectly honest, we don't have the time, inclination, or even means to do that. Amazon can, in contrast, because they have credit card information. All we have is a working e-mail address.)
As I wrote above, we're simply hoping that real names -- either in the profile page or, ideally, in the form of a username -- will confer a sense of old fashioned, off-line community on this new online community.
As for the question of having to remember capitalizations and spaces, you're right. You can, of course, let the site just remember who you are and keep you signed in. -
I respect David's request for real names. When we use real names, we need to choose our words carefully vs. venting. Besides, It does sound pretty weird when David must announce his online comments with a variety of bizarre user names. It lowers the level of credibility and professionalism that Think Out Loud has otherwise earned.
-
I don't mind using my real name. I didn't put my last name down but I did put my real first name and middle initial. If I need to I will also use my real last name. I'm not ashamed of what I say and I am willing to discuss my differences with others should that become necessary. I do think that using our real names can make that a lot easier to do.
-
I never mind to use my real name. But now I am using my username because of my personal reasons.
_________________________
veny
Addiction Recovery Oregon -
Yes, I do support the sense of openness in using the real name, therefore I am changing Gotami to Yolanda Rommel...
Thank you for the great forrum.
BTW... and this is not relaterd to this tread. English is my second language and my writing requires editing. The pencil icon next to my entries is embarassing, yet I do not knnow how to edit my comments. Is there an edditing feature on this site to be used by participants? Thank you for help with this. My mistakes do not mean a lack of respect for the reader. -
Great!This article is creative
Disodium EDTA
Calcium Disodium EDTA
-
Comments are now closed.
