… or: why you should not upset a tech-savvy person nowadays.

This is just a quick blurb (yes, blurb is my new favorite word, The Girl That Knows Everything About B5 knows why): During my final thesis and in the recent months I’ve given one issue more than just a casual thought – with the rising popularity of social networks and publishing platforms, e.g. YouTube, almost every person that knows how to sign up for those services can publish content.

While this often proves that many people do not think before they act – or why would Twitter, YouTube, Facebook etc. overflow with useless content -, these services can also be utilized for the better. Large news agencies or corporations do no longer control the flow of news and I’ve said it more than one time: do not mess with (video-) bloggers! If one has a sufficiently large following or is familiar with technology, the world will know.

Think I am wrong? Well, there are numerous examples, but the most current statement out there is by Dave Carroll. United Airlines broke his guitar, admitted to have done so, but refused to refund him for the damage. Usually, a large corporation like the United would win, but they did not consider that Dave Carroll would write a song about his experience and post it on YouTube – with more than 4 million clicks so far the news has spread, United promised to make it up to him and Taylor (the guitar maker) got great publicity for free. The song is now even available on iTunes!

This single example (and there are more out there) just shows that the balance of power has shifted. While there is always the danger of misuse of the new mediums of communication, it has also become a tool to exercise leverage (and yes, that reminds me of the TV show with the same name. I am a geek.)

Any thoughts on that whole matter? Share, please.

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