November 17, 2005
CNet: Taking Back the Web
Day three of CNet's five-day special report on the social web (Taking Back the Web) focuses on tagging:
“The idea behind tagging may be irresistibly simple, but its ramifications are enormous and complex. For more than a decade, the primary way to categorize and find information on the Internet was through the automated algorithms of search engines, a process at once laborious and highly imprecise. Tagging has quickly gained popularity because it allows human beings to bring intuitive organization to what otherwise would be largely anonymous entries in an endless sea of data.”
Fair warning, it's a rather chunky story, but a good one nonetheless, touching on some of the bigger trends (and profiling some of the bigger personalities) behind tagging today.
Also, it's worth pointing out that the previous two reports have been really well done too (Entertainment: Underground Taste Makers and Wikis: News, History by Committee). I think the wiki report in particular is interesting, especially when you put it in context with an associated wiki-based editorial experiment CNet's undertaking with its “Reader WIki” (a subject for a follow-up post).
Finally, what's a special report in a Media 2.0 world if it doesn't come with the accompanying (cough, obligatory) blog posts, reader comments and podcasts! CNet's even taken it a step further and offering a full PDF of the special report right now, including tomorrow (update: see Maps) and Friday's stories), if you simply register. Not a bad deal, here's the link (PDF).
Technorati Tags: Blogging, Media, Podcasting, Tags, Web 2.0, Wiki
