Thing 12: Do you Digg?

Voting for news content? In a way, the concept is probably not all that new, just not quite as obvious, i.e., TV ratings, Web site hits, newspaper and magazine circulations that reflect to some degree people's level of interest in the "product" they have to sell.

Reference:

1. Digg


2. Reddit


3. Newsvine


4. Mixx

What I enjoyed about visiting these sites is that not only did they have stories neglected by mainstream media but they also enlightened me about the vast array of media floating out there in the ether. Seeing what appeals to other readers could be the stuff of a social psychology dissertation. (In fact, behavior on these social and sharing sites could be the subject of many studies.)

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How would I use these resources? Probably not in the library, at least not initially. My sense is that high school students could easily be distracted by the voluminous content and the more bizarre headlines, and get off course, off task. Additionally, students, who are not always critical viewers, may need the information literacy instruction, tools, and reminders about evaluating their online sources. Moreover, given their limited time in the library, I'd also focus on the basic information literacy skills--build the foundation--before moving toward the advanced/enrichment/questionable sources. Yet I wonder whether some people may argue that these sorts of sources should be considered part of the foundation. At this point, I don't know--but remain skeptical.

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In any event, I would tend to use these sources myself as a means for finding information in nontraditional ways, although they certainly have the potential to be personal "distractors" or "time stealers." It's probably a question of self-discipline vs. computer addiction.