In the next week or so,
The Huffington Post is going to add some new "blog topic" pages within their existing
Technology section. One of those topic pages is going to be "Tech + Education," and I've been asked to be a contributing blogger to that section.
(
Update 12-16-09: They've decided to delay the Tech + Education section until January 11th, 2010, so that it doesn't get lost in the holidays. This is perfect, as it gives me almost four more weeks to lose sleep over this.)
This was not an easy decision for me for a variety of reasons.
The Huffington Post is a different space than this blog, and that brings with it both some good things and some not so good things. One of my concerns is that the conversations on that blog can get both off-topic and somewhat uncivil at times. Not only do I not have a very thick skin, but I'm not particularly interested in contributing to something that generates a lot of noise but doesn't actually move the conversation forward.
The Huffington Post is also generally considered
to have a political bias, and – while I realize everything has a political aspect to it – I don’t want what I write about (and what we’ve all been talking about these last few years) to be viewed as being on one political "side" or the other. I'm not very much interested in "sides," I'm more interested in solutions. I know it's naïve, but I don't view any of this stuff through a political lens, I just want to write about and think about and talk about learning. And students. And teachers. And technology. And how best to do this thing we call school. And I want it to make a difference.
So I thought about this for a while, went back and forth with myself, and finally decided to give this a shot for a couple of reasons. First, it's an opportunity to take this conversation to a wider and different audience than typically reads this blog. We've all talked about "preaching to the choir" and the "echo chamber," and how we need to engage with folks that typically are not present in our spaces, and this is an opportunity to do that. I've written more than once about teachers and students being willing to take some risks in their teaching and learning, so I guess I better walk the walk and take a risk myself.
Second, and this is the main reason for this post, I'm counting on a secret weapon to help me out with this.
You.
(Stop looking around, I'm talking to you.) I figure if I can bring all of you with me, then I have a much better shot at making this work.
So, here's the deal. Whenever I post to
The Huffington Post I'm going to cross-post here, and I'm going to both ask and count on all of you to get involved in the conversation there as well as here. Now, I'm not asking you to always agree with me (although, you know, it would be nice if you occasionally did). What I'm asking is that you bring your perspective as thoughtful people that have been thinking and writing and commenting and struggling with these issues for a while now into a space where many of the folks reading and commenting are coming at this from a different perspective. That doesn't mean their perspective is wrong or that we can't learn from it, it simply means that we need your perspective as well. If you'll join me there, then maybe, just maybe, we can do some good.
What do you say?
Labels: education_change, huffington_post, personal
Of course you should use ads. Why not? Especially since you're planning to donate the money. I'm using Amazon affiliates on my library website. To avoid "cheapening" the blog, you should use whatever controls are available. For example, with Amazon, I don't use the option where they can pick items which they think my readers are interested in based on what I've written about.
The reason you give of trying it so you can learn about it is a standard techie response to anything. That's why I've tried most Web 2.0 tools--for example, "I'll just sign up for Delicious to see what it's all about"--and next thing you know, I have over 6000 bookmarks. Since a lot of your readers are technophiles, we probably subscribe in a reader anyway, so we wouldn't see the ads unless we chose to comment.
@Jude - That's interesting that you choose not to target the ads. If your readers have to see ads, don't you think it would make more sense to see ads they might be interested in? Chris Anderson makes that point in his book and talks about how that's the opposite of his print publication rules (separating it for journalistic integrity).
And, yes, I know most of the folks that read the blog do it in an aggregator, although I know some Gogole AdSense can also come through into the aggregator.
I don't really think of Amazon Affiliate links as ads. The way I use them, I am talking about books I actually am reading/recommending. They don't generate a huge amount for me, but I do get about $20 in Amazon gift certificates each month. If you read a lot, they're worth it.
On the other hand, unless you can control ads on Google AdSense, you might want to think about it some more. If your gut is telling you not to, you might want to figure out what your reservations are before you proceed. Ads are a decision every blogger has to make for him/herself, I suppose.
I say, "go for it." I read Anderson's book this past summer (downloaded it to my iPhone for Free) and it was an excellent introduction to the economy of "free." Give it a shot here at the Fischbowl...you can always turn it off later, but I'd imagine it will turn into quite a learning experience for you. Good luck!
I would also be grateful to hear you process your thoughts and reactions as your use of ads unfolds. It could be a great resource/learning tool to provide an ongoing window into your experience.
Good Lord, no.
The page is yours, your words, your thoughts.
I enjoy wandering around spaces that aren't sniffing out my last 37 cookies.
Ads are distracting--they're meant to be. Cage it in subtle velvet bars, donate the money to whatever fund, the issue gets down to control.
You're ceding control for a bit of cash. Sometimes that makes sense. It's what we do when we work.
It's your site, and I've enjoyed it--seeing an ad would be like having a friend go Amway on me.
As a long time user of Adblock Plus, it wouldn't really make much of a difference to me.
I, like doyle, am also not a fan of advertising that places tracking cookies. The controls Jude has opted to use sound good to me, but I guess I wouldn't have much of a problem with ads served based on the content of the blog itself.