April 27, 2008
“Where do people find the time?”
My mom has often asked me, in a tone of disdain, how people find the time to do so much stuff on the Internet—stuff that she thinks is, with a few tiny exceptions, worthless—and I’ve been saying to her for years, “They spend less time than you do slackjawed in front of the TV.”
In this short talk, Clay Shirky puts a number on that amount of “found” time. And then he explains how what people are now starting to do with that time is fundamentally different from watching television.
I think it’s fair to say that if you’re interested in Clusterflock, you’ll be fascinated by this talk.
Here’s a transcript, for those who are distracted by Mr. Shirky’s fidgeting around next to the podium: Gin, Television, and Social Surplus.
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16 Responses to ““Where do people find the time?””
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[…] (via India @ clusterflock) […]
I wish the street vendors were pushing gin carts down my street instead of selling Mexican ices.
This is the single best thing I have ever seen on this site. Thank you, India.
I thought it was this.
I said it before, and I’ll say it again: Andrew is an Excitable Boy.
Where do people find the time?
“No one who works in TV gets to ask that question.”
This is a wonderful talk. Thanks, India.
thank you, India. fantastic.
I thought y’all might find it worthwhile.
And I must admit that I’m relieved by his principle that “It’s better to do something than to do nothing.” Makes me feel a lot less shitty about using the Internets as a heat sink for most of my own cognitive surplus. No, I am not turning myself into a vegetable; I’m participating in a postindustrial revolution!
Oh, and he teaches at that school where I’m going.
India, I didn’t know you’d gone back to school. Tell us about it.
I’m not there yet. Classes start September 2.
Oooh. That sounds wonderful.
[…] lunch I read an article which reminded me of Clay Shirky’s observations applied to literature: “As publishing has become less expensive, the urge to write my own self […]
Well played, Deron. Well played.
This concept, rather than scientific learning or any rival doctrine, is where I see the greatest social change. My first thought about people no longer accepting passive or fixed types of religion actually came to me as a young boy, pre-internet during a church sermon.
I wanted to ask a question about something during the sermon but wasn’t allowed to. Why not? I thought bitterly. Why do we just sit here soaking up this lesson with no room for our own input or experience?
While I do not expressly oppose organized religion I see this as a threat or the impetus for a significant paradigm shift.
Wonderful presentation with excellent points. What’s the most interaction a TV can provide? Changing the channel? Calling in to vote for your favorite singer on American Idol? No thanks.
[…] Where do people find the time, stupid tv as taken it, watch this it’s important to the next generation of media. http://www.clusterflock.org/2008/04/where-do-people-find-the-time.html […]