Cluetrain, Naked Conversations & Groundswell

--3 Points in a Revolutionary Bitstream


[Charlene Li (l) with Shirley Owyang at Silicon Valley Party. Photo by Shel]

David Weinberger, Charlene LI and I were keynoters at Community 2.0 . It's a bit daunting to follow those two but I think I was pretty well-received anyway. At the break, we were asked to sign books and we were pretty much surprised by a long line that waited patiently to have us sign our works. For any author I've talked with it is always a kick to sign a book, but to do it with David and Charlene made me feel pretty proud.

Someone in the line said, "Wow, the authors of the three seminal social media books in one place at one time." It was a comment that resonated with me. At first I wanted to discount it as overly flattering, But after a few days, I've come to think:

• Cluetrain ignited the fire that caused the revolution. People did not just want to be message targets. They wanted to talk back. We who followed Cluetrain were the insurectionaries generally ignored by the keepers of corporate power.
• Naked Conversations, written in 2005, gave a compelling case for why businesses should use social media. It's followers took the revolution inside the enterprise walls, where small bands of zealots have been spreading the word often with mixed results and great frustration.
• Groundswell presents an understanding of the processes that will normalize social media, taking it to the point beyond conflict and controversy. It is the least revolutionary in tone, but just might be the book that finished the coup the Cluetrain started and Naked spread.

I never quite saw this so clearly until someone made that comment and I feel good about it. I hope sometime the three of us get to speak again, perhaps on the dais at the same time.

Comments

[John Cass]

Shel, I've read your book (with Robert) and the cluetrain, both great book. Looking forward to reading Groundswell.

I really liked your book because of the international coverage, that was the section that gave me the most new insight. It is another reason why I continue to enjoy reading your interviews and posts with people from all over the world. I think you doing some of the most original work in the industry. Great interviews with people I would not connect with otherwise.

[Andrew Careaga]

Shel - I like the progression you're showing but I think you're missing at least two important pieces:

* Before Cluetrain, the foundation for discussion about social media can be traced back to Howard Rheingold's "The Virtual Community." Although not explicit, many of the ideas embodied in Cluetrain find their basis in Rheingold's book.

* Between Cluetrain and Naked Conversations, I would plug Weinberger's "Small Pieces Loosely Joined." I think that's an important but often overlooked book that built on the Cluetrain premise.

[Justin Thorp]

While I haven't read Groundswell yet, I've been hearing good things.

I totally agree with the notion that these are three seminal books. I recommend them all the time.

The praise is well deserved.

[Jeremiah Owyang]

I agree, each of these three books have been great impacts on my career. I've gotten to know Doc Searls, I was with you during your launch, and now with Groundswell, I'm so thankful for each of the contributions the 8 of you have done for the industry.

The thing is, each of the three books serves a different purpose, at a different time, each building off each other.

[Connie Bensen]

Shel,
Your book has proven to be a cornerstone. You definitely should be proud! Thank you for continuing to contribute.

[Kathy]

I still have students read parts of Cluetrain (it's lovely that it is online).

Others in the genre, old & new: Howard Rheingold, Smart Mobs; Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody; Don Tapscott, Wikinomics;

Robert spoke to my summer economics of digital information class last summer; I timed it with Gnomedex. Maybe you could do a remote this summer!