BusinessWeek Logo

Ingram: BusinessWeek doesn't get user-generated stuff

Posted by: Stephen Baker on November 26

Mathew Ingram complains that BusinessWeek simplifies and slams User Generated Content.

He writes:


The thing that really bugs me about the BusinessWeek article is that there’s this false dichotomy between high-quality professional content and low-quality UGC crap. It’s not that binary, I would argue. It’s more like a spectrum, with professional content on one end, and as you move down the scale you get lower quality, until there’s your brother-in-law singing karaoke.

But reading the article, I see more texture (and less false dichotemy) than Mathew. The conclusion is that many users and advertisers appear to be heading toward professional-quality content. That means that freelancers who want to attract eyeballs and ad dollars would be well advised to polish their product. They’ve got the tools.

TrackBack URL for this entry: http://blogs.businessweek.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/

Reader Comments

Mike Keliher

November 26, 2007 01:02 PM

Another thing, too, is that, depending on the subject at hand and the depth one desires, some "amateur" content would fall on the "better" side of the spectrum, beyond even professionally produced content. It's a matter of content vs. presentation or "polish."

Mathew Ingram

November 26, 2007 01:47 PM

You might be right, Stephen. I was mostly using the article as the jumping-off point for a rant about the anti-UGC slant that a lot of professional media have been taking (for obvious reasons), but I may have tarred the BW article with too broad a brush, and if I did then I apologize.

John

November 28, 2007 10:22 AM

There are a lot of business news websites that are emerging above the crowd, and they are able to offer insightful information about companies. For example, the NewsVisual story on InnerWorkings http://www.newsvisual.com/newsvisual/2007/11/experienced-dir.html#more talks about the company’s potential for revenue growth and how the experience of its Board of Directors, implying that the company has sound leadership.

Post a comment

 

About

In Blogspotting Senior Writer Stephen Baker and Associate Editor Heather Green take a look at how cutting-edge technologies are changing business and society. Whether its blogs or wikis, data crunching or data targeting, technology’s advances are reshaping the world that we live in.

RSS Feed: Blogspotting

BW Mall - Sponsored Links