The New Information/Communication Paradigm (The Power of Ten)

The old mass media communication style was to broadcast to millions -- appealing to the lowest common dominator of fear, anxieties, prejudices, while the new style targets the highest common denominator of equality. That is the well-proven strategy of finding those who understand what one is talking about -- rather than trying to persuade those who have no idea what one is talking about, and could care less. So it is important that the proper audience self-select themselves for this effectiveness. Otherwise, like so many times in the past, one is forcing an audience to listen to a rant they don’t want to hear -- as though the speaker alone, could determine that appropriateness for the audience.

That is the tyranny of mass communications, and not the freedom of speech, and listening, which is real communication. Often in the former, the audience has to be tricked and deceived into continuing to listen -- rather than knowing from the beginning, and at every point thereafter, that they wish to continue that participation willfully. Often in reading, as well as in listening, one may read (listen) endlessly with no idea where it is all going, and whether it is worth the time and energy to continue. One is advised that if one simply endures, some purpose will be made manifest and apparent. Most of the time though, there is no point other than to consume one’s time, energy and attention -- as an exercise of the power to do so, since no greater insight is forthcoming.

Tyranny and terrorism is very easy to see as an abuse of physical power -- but oftentimes, as a psychological abuse, is greatly admired -- especially by the intellectual class -- those who pride themselves on their largely imagined superiority in such abilities, expressed in these communications. People who are just a little bit more clever with language skills, find it easy to intimidate those less so. But when communications become a universal field of participation instead of just the province and jurisdiction of a self-designated, self-appointed, self-anointed few, society has been transformed and liberated.

When everybody can play, the game is no longer who can speak to the largest captive audience, but who can find his proper audience and reach it best -- no matter what the size, because the ability to replicate that successful prototype, is not a limitation. It doesn’t matter how large an audience one can address ineffectively; it only matters how well one can reach any audience -- even of one. That is the computer model -- that a problem only has to be solved once, definitively well, in order for it to be replicated as many times as one wants/needs to.

One used to be the virtual captive audience whenever someone from the broadcast media spoke, as an implied authority by virtue of that visibility. That was the tyranny of information and opinion -- in the old days. Some still practice it -- and wonder where all the people have gone. The quality and integrity of the communications and information is the only thing that matters now. When that is achieved, the ten can reach the ten, that reaches the ten, that reaches the ten…

That is the improvement of targeted communications over mass communications, whose inaccuracies and distortions are excused by “deadline pressures.” There is no going back. But they are still lamenting their own passing for as long as they can.