Originally published on spiked. Last week saw the launch in Washington DC of the World Wide Web Foundation, a new organisation with the aim of maintaining the web as an open and beneficial tool for all. On the face of it, its aims should be deserving of our support. But the Foundation should steer clear […]
Continue ReadingOrganised defeat?
Originally published on Culture Wars (now defunct). Clay Shirky, adjunct professor at NYU, in his new book Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations, argues that all this represents the awakening of democracy. People are more able to influence others by overlooking cumbersome official channels that are unrepresentative and out-moded, which worries the […]
Continue ReadingA radical re-think of what ‘change’ means
Originally published on spiked. UK prime minister Gordon Brown’s bedtime reading this year has included a book called We-Think: Mass Innovation, Not Mass Production, by Charles Leadbeater – a man familiar to many in British government and policy circles, since he previously worked in Tony Blair’s 10 Downing Street policy unit (1). He is also the […]
Continue ReadingThe rise and rise of ‘anti-design’
Originally published on spiked. Philippe Starck is possibly the world’s most famous designer. He has put a sense of style and fun into many people’s lives, furnishing their homes, offices and public spaces with his trademark French flair. He has made millions by doing everything from designing lemon squeezers to styling airport lounges. But Starck […]
Continue ReadingCensorship online: who needs evidence?
Originally published on spiked. The internet is made up of hardcore pornography, videos of fighting, bullying, rape and websites that glorify extreme diets, selfharm, and suicide. Or at least that’s the impression you could easily be left with after reading an alarm-ridden report just published by a UK parliamentary committee. And that means further support […]
Continue ReadingHands off our internet connections
Originally published on spiked. Over the past month, the UK’s internet service providers (ISPs) have sent letters to more than a thousand people each week who have downloaded or shared copyrighted music via the internet. It is part of a campaign to ‘get tough’ on illegal file-sharing. The letter-writing campaign is a response to the […]
Continue ReadingCan design cut crime?
Can design reduce crime? Local councils around the UK certainly seem to think so. Starting today, they will all be using a new M-shaped bike stand called the ‘caMden’, in the hope that it will deter thieves from stealing bicycles. It’s a simple idea: the main feature of the caMden is that it has more […]
Continue ReadingCo-author Winners and Losers in a Troubled Economy: How to Engage Customers Online to Gain Competitive Advantage
Co-author, cScape, 11 March 2008. Amazon link.
Continue ReadingAuthor credit: The Enemies of Progress: Dangers of Sustainability
By Austin Williams, Societas Paperback, 1 May 2008 Amazon link
Continue ReadingWhy we should swat The Mosquito
Originally published on spiked. Yesterday, civil libertarians and concerned officials launched a campaign called ‘Buzz Off’, with the aim of ridding Britain’s streets and estates of 3,500 ultra-sonic devices called ‘the Mosquito’. Introduced at locations around the country in January 2006, these little machines emit a disturbing buzzing noise that is only audible to those […]
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