Two very different experiences this week have had me musing on whether there’s a north-south divide in how social media is used.
Looking first at the #1pound40 event in London. It was an intriguing concept – for just £1.40, the opportunity to share knowledge and ideas with some of the leading lights of the social media UK whirl.
There were Tuttlers, journalists and broadcasters; there were geeks, students and marketing types; the venue was impressive (Reuters in the Daily Planet like environs of Canary Wharf) and the whole event had an air of expectation.
Something was going to happen. SOMETHING IMPORTANT.
So, a couple of days later, why do I still have this niggling feeling that, if something did happen, I must have missed it?
Perhaps this feeling was in part provoked by my experience the night before at Leeds Social Media Surgery.
The surgery was an opportunity for charities and not-for-profits to come and find out about social media and see if it could help them in their work. I spent the evening talking about blogging with a woman who wants to provide the opportunity for interaction via a blog for workers in the mental health sector, as well as hearing about an impassioned campaign to help Palestinians where I was able to offer some basic advice about libel. In this setting, the social media tools were just that – tools to be utilised as part of a wider aim.
Back to London and what was described as ‘a curated unconference’, the purpose of our gathering was to explore issues raised by social media – questions such as if Twitter was a force for good, whether journalism was being democratised by the tools of web 2.0 and my old favourite – who can be called, or call themselves, a journalist?
Unlike other ‘unconference’ events I’ve been to, there were no sessions or pitches and instead small groups at tables discussed the issues between themselves before sharing their individual pithy conclusions via Twitter.
(As an aside, oddly for an event which ended up being monopolised by talk about Twitter, the backchannel wasn’t always in evidence – in fact when it was projected behind the panel at the end of the event it proved to be such a novel intervention that it completely distracted both panelists and audience!)
As the sessions concluded I took stock – had I learned anything? No. Had I contributed to anyone else learning anything? No.
It felt like we were all saying the same thing, speaking the social media speak. The digerati in full flow – agreeing with one another.
Some of the topics touched upon digital inclusion and the potential for political engagement through social media, but while we were talking, tweeting and pontificating, who was actually listening? What do the views of a bunch of always-on wired meeja professionals in London have to do with delivering news and information services to people working in tough but essential spheres such as the mental health sector, or living in areas where broadband access is still an aspiration not a reality?
That’s not to say it wasn’t an enjoyable event – I caught up with some people I haven’t seen in a while, put some faces to Twitter avatars and met some completely new people I’m sure I’ll enjoy following. As a meet-up, it was most conducive.
But all in all, for me at least, it was an afternoon inside the echo chamber, the reverberations of which will probably not even reach Islington, let alone Leeds.
There’s some other coverage of these two events that I’ve seen, as follows;
* The Guardian’s Mercedes Bunz gamely attempted a live blog of #1pound40 here and here.
* Leeds Social Media Surgery organiser John Popham summed up the evening here.
* The echo chamber is one of the topics which Christian Payne (AKA @documentally) also discusses in this audioboo which considered the psychology of Twitter.
* The Business Two Zero blog discusses the £1.40 event and also provides plenty of links to other views from the day.
Dim Sum Digital 
I’ve written on it myself before but the biggest single problem with Twitter is it encourages agreement – not debate.
I’m also very tired of the self congratulatory “we so get it” clique chat. Social media is a great way to give people a voice but does owning a blog really give you the right to sneer at the media instincts of Murdoch? (there are of course plenty of good reasons to sneer at him).
I’m sick of the same two dozen words being jumbled up and put into assorted articles that people add to Delicious, retweet them and post them on their blogs and none of them really say anything new.
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Isn’t that true of Twitter, and indeed, the entire Internet as a whole?
Part of the reason that social media cliques huddle with each other and agree with each other is that it’s a self-protection thing. Outside, in the real world, they have to convince their bosses etc. of the worth of social media, which isn’t exactly an easy task.
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I always take away from ‘Tweet-ups’ the feeling that all of the talented people I just met should try to put their combined talents to some use.
Having all found each other no-one seems sure of what to do next, apart from stand around chatting.
All of which is very pleasant, but they feel a little bit like a meeting that everyone has been called to that lacks the chair.
Or do I mean those Hammer horror anthology films where everyone ends up trapped in a hotel room? Either way I’ve clearly lost wherever it was I was going with this.
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You may be wondering why I have called you all here tonight…..
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Exactly!
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Great post Sarah. This week I attended Chain Reaction, an event where participants shared ideas about how to achieve social change.
I went to neither if the events you attended, but from what I read here, it was more like the one you went in Leeds than the £1.40 one. There was a social media clinic all day where charities and social entrepreneurs could get advice on their social media strategy.
Tweeting was very much in evidence during #cr09 and I tweeted a question to the panel during one session. (can’t comment on what other forms of social networking were being used). According to one of the panel chairs, questions to the panel were arriving from people who were viewing the conference from home or work on a videocast via the event website.
Then, following the conference, there was a Tweet Up. You can follow the proceedings with #nfptweetup. I didn’t stay for the TweetUp, but the event as a whole reinforced my belief that Twitter is a great way of covering events as a journalist and of sharing new ideas. And maybe Twitter will prove to be a good way of making sure some of the ideas formed at the conference can be realised?
I suppose the event in Leeds may have had a more definitive aim than the one in London. Maybe that’s the secret of making these events work?
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That sounds an interesting event – I’ll look back at the #tags. Yes I guess having a stated aim provides a greater structure although that’s not to say that having something more free-form doesn’t have value as well. If one of the ambitions is to consider political engagement via social media, I feel it would be beneficial to widen the pool of participants – not least to include politicians.
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That is spot on – some People who use Twitter assume everyone else is as social media savvy as them & then base all their thinking around that assumption. Leads to an arrogant tone at times, which puts people off as what they are discussing seems a closed shop
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And we’ve all just agreed – dammit!
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lol 🙂
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I have a foot in both camps. I also think the North is getting IT faster than the South. The northerners don’t waste as much time talking about IT, they tend to see the potential and use anything useful they find. The southerners want to spread the knowledge of the potential far and wide.
The idea of meetups to discuss social media means like minded people can meet in real life and explore new ways. I am sure many learned a lot at the conf even if you didn’t, and as you pointed out you put names to avatars and made new friends and acquaintances. Well worth a day to find just one new friend, one can never have enough.
I also agree that the social media surgeries are a fantastic opportunity to help people achieve things and also to make new friends, so the jury is still out…
… thoughtful post. Well done.
I live in an area of the North West which has vast swathes of land with no broadband at all. There is no point in trying to promote social media here, and I am glad you mentioned that in your post. Hopefully some of the meeja professionals you mentioned will clock that fact! There is no point in talking about the brave new world until we all have access to it. I don’t think anyone in the south realises how difficult it is up here to get a connection… and mobile sucks too.
thanks for taking the trouble to speak out
chris
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Thanks for your comments Chris and yes, if we’ve got any influence and a voice thanks to social media, let’s at least use it in part to keep the pressure on for proper broadband access for all.
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@ourman, @almostwitty and @robinbrown thanks for your comments – it’s interesting that you’ve all picked up on a theme that came out from doing a quick survey at a recent Manchester Social Media Cafe where a lot of people feel they should be utilising social media tools for something greater than general chit chat or meet-ups. But where is that talent and enthusiasm best channelled? I think it’s a fascinating area and one where, hopefully, we’ll see some creative responses and action going forward.
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I know what you are saying. I had a similar conversation with someone in the digital field yesterday. It sometimes feels like we can get too wrapped up in the social media inner circle and spend too much time talking about how great twitter is.
I was also a surgeon at the social media surgery in Leeds and it was refreshing to help someone just get a basic understanding of what is available to them online and some of the first steps that might be taken. I came away with a much nicer feeling from the social media surgery then some of the other events I had been to recently.
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I must be in a different world…I find plenty of good debate on twitter.. points, counterpoints and then more substantial pieces emerging in blogs. Nice thing about Leeds SMS was that real activists wanted to understand and use tools. Rather than a bunch of techies wallowing in the glory of their own prowess.
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Echo much of the above; although I would wonder where the East would fit into this great North/South debate… someone’s doing something out of Norfolk, I’m told.. 🙂
But, yes, exactly.
Was invited to £1.40; ended up not doing for Old Dear and Hospital reasons than any great: ‘What’s the point?’ feeling, but I know damn well that I got more out of four-hours and a Indian buffet in theback end of Burslem on Monday and 90-minutes with @NorthEastTweets in Alvinos on Pilgrim St, Newcastle, on Friday than I would ever have done in three hours at Reuters…
… not to mention a Thursday coffee in Norwich with @HarryHarrold, his Toby and our Ian… that was another top meeting outside the M25 ‘bubble’… it’s where, IMHO, things tend to get done.
best etc
R
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I enjoyed the post a lot Sarah; it’s good to have our digital Smugosphere – and I admit I am a resident – stirred up sometimes.
I’ve learned so much from my social networks I feel a little churlish complaining but, nevertheless, it does sometimes feel like I’ve read the same sentence from five different events; the only difference is the hashtag. And there no links or context to set these phrases against, so it’s actually frustrating rather than enlightening.
There’s a TweetUp North in Liverpool on Monday and I’m looking forward to seeing how it goes because it’s very focused on sharing knowledge.
The previous tweetups (which I helped organise) have been either based on Twestival partying or a random get together with music and – while they were fun, and raised plenty of money for good causes – they were purely social events. I’m also really excited about where the newly-formed Open Liverpool group might take things as its focus feels more about freeing up knowledge and helping people discover things themselves.
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Nice post Sarah
Not sure I agree that there is a north-south divide in the use of Social Media, rather I think that the two events you reference were for very different audiences.
The #1pound40 event was about bringing together some of the cognoscenti in the social media world to share what they know and explore how they can collaborate to take it all to the next stage. The Leeds Social Media Surgery was about volunteers with some knowledge of social media passing on that knowledge to those just beginning to dip their toes in the water.
There is a wider issue here, which is; why do all the big, high-profile events HAVE to happen in London? Well they don’t, not ALL of them, but enough of them to annoy those of us who happen to have a perspective beyond the capital.
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You’re probably right – perhaps less a north/south divide and more a London and not-London one. (not so easy for a headline tho!) And your question about why everything has to happen in London is one I seem to continually be asking – and something I’ll continue to work on in whatever small way I can. We haz the technology………………………..
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Coming from the Midlands in Birmingham we have both things going on.
Sometimes we sit and agree with each other and do little else – other times we apply the social capital that comes from meeting each other to move things on: Big City Plan Talk, Social Media Surgeries, BCCDIY, even west by west midlands and twitpanto were doing in the face of other stuff.
Which is more valuable. Doing stuff together is where real trust is formed, where people understand each others limits, their own – those of the technology and learn about helping others get the most out of this stuff. On the whole I would much rather miss a big event to do a neighbourhood surgery.
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Sorry – I know most places have both doing and talking going on!
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Not sure everywhere does have people doing together, Nick. But it is growing
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The whole purpose of the Amplified movement behind £1.40 is to bring together the various social media meetups, share expertise and make us all do a more effective job, as well as getting these tools more widely adopted. I worry about the echo chamber nature of some of the events, but I don’t see a North/South divide. I do see a divide between the those with a “fluffy” emphasis on social media marketing and those that want to get things done, whether it is collaboration in the enterprise (large and smll), helping non-profits be more effective, or trying to effect political change. I’m hoping £1.40 wasn’t just an internal talking shop, and some proper seeds get planted and grow. Some of us have that ideal in mind and are trying to do more (like the the thing you picked up on where I’ll be showing my PPC how to ue Twitter tomorow).
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Agree that the the divide isn’t a geographical North/South split. There are good examples of social media actively used for social good in Sheffield, Leeds, Birmingham and, yes, in London. I’m aware of social media use being actively explored for citizens’ benefit in local authorities in Lincoln, Lichfield, Coventry, to single a few out.
The divide is between the talkers and the doers.
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Great stuff Sarah – to add a couple of observations.
As a company that is attempting to introduce a service aimed at community/local websites, we are finding it is becoming increasingly obvious that those publishers based in rural areas (or inner cities even) are having their work cut out to encourage participation in their websites (gaining an audience) let alone crazy ideas like on-line advertising, social media, or joining a debate on their forums… Its a slow process
There are issues over digital inclusion, technical knowledge, and general understanding, etc – all important of course and being unable to hook-up to the net is a massive problem – one that just does not, it seems, compute with those based in London in particular.
There are organisations that are genuinely trying to break down the barriers to entry into this wonderful world of blogging, Twitter, FaceBook, Social Media we in the south ‘get’ – TalkAboutLocal being a good example.
As an aside – I wonder if there is an opportunity here for local media organisations to do more as well? As their backs are against the wall with costs, declining ad revenues and readership, and with spare office space, why not engage and educate – encourage the new readers (on what ever platform that may take) to participate, join the debate, and so become more engaged in their communities, for both the community and the publishers – this is an initiative that could work with the local libraries, councils, fits with ‘Digital Britian’, etc, etc – rather than fight, why not work with it?
Is this a North/South thing? Probably – its great when you see all you need to know about social media classes being advertised at £25/40/50 a ticket and then being surprised the same old faces turn up at such events… why not free coffee mornings, with the location changing from schools, libraries, community centres, councils offices and Chambers of Commerce on a revolving basis. Where the community can meet with local bloggers, community web publishers, social media types, etc. and learn first hand, almost 1-2-1, about this here new fangled web thing…
And as for Twitter…
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Some great ideas, here Matt. Wondering how we make them happen
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Matt,
Still not convinced it’s a North/South thing (spoken like a southerner I hear you saying!), but I agree with you completly on the digital exclusion thing. We need more volunteer run free events like the Social Media Surgery going on in Huddersfiled (from the idea started in Birmingham) this week:
http://huddersfieldsocial.wordpress.com/
The idea of local media geting involved in that kind ofthing is a great idea.
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Just to follow up on Johns and Davids feedback (and of course thank you) – we, Addiply, would happily look to work with local media in organising a coffee morning to introduce local charities, the media, organisations, potential bloggers, etc to the WWW, – doesn’t need to be a big deal, just a drop-in, say hello and don’t be afraid to ask type affair…
Doesn’t need a Twitter Fall, live blogging, or keynote speakers – just an inviting environment, some local publicity (local print?), bits of kit, and 3/4 specialists – who would like to be involved, and I guess how do we make this happen?
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Where are you based Matt?
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Deepest Dalston, London, E8 – these guys are doing a pretty decent job of very local reporting – http://www.dalstonpeople.co.uk but being part of Associated means there are a load of hurdles to get over to stand a chance of galvanising them into acting on the ideas highlighted here (for example) – reckon places like Wigan, Stoke-on-Trent, etc would be more open to experimenting with surgeries (although I don’t like that term, too clinical?!)?
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Matt,
I believe t’s @podnosh/Nick Booth who came up with the Surgery term and is trying to seed the idea round the world:
http://podnosh.com/blog/2009/11/11/spawning-social-media-surgeries/
Heard him speak at the Reboot Britain session earlier in the year – seems to be doing a great job.
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Sorry Nick – didn’t notice that was you up there.
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Thanks to @johnpopham for the heads up about this post in the Grassroots Digital Britain wave.
Is it North/South? Maybe it is just more urban/rural. If I talk about a blog in my local pub here in deepest Cumbria, half the locals (that’s about 8 people) would look at me completely blankly.
Many people in my village haven’t got broadband. They either can’t, or won’t. It’s changing as new people move in who are used to such desperately new-fangled technologies like the computer, but the reality is that if they decide to dip their toe into the internet, utter confusion reigns.
Who do you ask for advice about which ISP, which tariff, what exactly do you need to do this ‘getting online’ thing? If you are older, and don’t have a car, even getting to the library to ask there is a problem. And they know very little about the Net in there beyond the fact they have a computer in the corner you can ‘go on’. The nearest CAB is 20 miles away. There is no ITDirect equivalent of NHSDirect to ring for advice.
People are sold dongles so they can get online with the laptop they have just bought, but no-one seems to mention that that won’t work here. Those with broadband moan constantly that it is ‘better than before, but so slow”.
We have social exchanges in our village and the neigbouring one once a month, where there is an internet specialist to help you read your email, answer questions etc. Minor problem – the dongle they brought with them to the first one last month doesn’t work, so as yet, no-one here with a problem relating to the internet has been ‘shown’ the answer online.
As for trying to talk to small businesses about social media marketing, etc – no chance. Many spend so many hours a day battling to do business online, submit annual returns and so on, they haven’t got time to even think about trying something new that they have never even heard of. What little information they have is from the TV or radio – Twitter is a complete waste of time and for twits, and facebook is for schoolkids. Uphill struggle really.
Finding like-minded people in your area – bloody impossible to tell the truth, unless you happen to stumble upon them online. Push a bigger organisation like the District Council to set up something novel to ACHIEVE something, and you face all the old stumbling blocks. The councillors etc have never heard of the brave new world of Ning; there is no funding to run an internet marketing course at the Online Centre and in any case, who would be interested? ARGGGggggggggggggggggggg ;o)
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Thanks for joining in on this Lindsey – it’s such a big issue and who’s taking any notice? Getting people to campaign for something they can’t even experience the benefit of (i.e. don’t know what opportunities they’re missing) means we risk rural areas becoming completely disengaged while cities become ever more wired. How do we get this issue the visibility it needs?
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hi sarah – on first reading i thought you had just hit on the latest variant of the Hoxton Tw*t problem that plagues every wave of the media industry.
persevering past the word ‘musings’ which normally spells doom i read david’s and matt’s replies and they have it about right – it is a pretty plain fluffy marketing/new toy versus getting tough things done divide. I only set up a blog because to amplify the social action i was engaged in in Kings Cross long before the lovely Guardian landed there. not becuase i intrinscially wanted one.
Now with talk about local we are taking unfashionable tools such as hosted blogging platfroms that create ugly sites into communities where they can make use of them for social change. it’s fab and I am grateful to 4IP, SWM and AWM for funding it.
see people in birmingham’s highgate (very different from london’s highgate) talk about it here
http://www.youtube.com/user/TalkAboutLocal
working out of birmingham and stoke illustrates to me the more effective combination there of new technology skills and a commitment to civic purpose. indeed much of what these cities brought were famous for in the C19th.
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Lindsey…
Sounds as if you live in Norfolk 😉 Spent the first three years of MyFootballWriter/Addiply’s life without a mobile phone signal… all of which means that joining the dots in rural UK is something of a hobby horse… and having been a provincial football writer for 13 years means that I’m more than happy to get on the road and do Carlisle (a)!
Hopefully, the work we’re doing with TM and their micro-sites through Northumberland – http://www.journallive.co.uk/northumberland-sites/ – can give us that much greater experience when it comes to enabling local communities and businesses in Cumbria to reap far more of the benefits of the web than they’re currently able to do… at least they won’t have to worry about meeting a Google ad rep anymore.
But as Matt said, more than happy to sit ourselves in a village hall somewhere and share knowledge… might even know someone who could start to address those connectivity issues…
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I have been following Sarahs Blog and watching as more comments are added. I feel quite nervous submitting my pennies worth, I have lived in the North, Scotland, as far south as Cirencester, as rurally as 8 miles from the closest shop and now live in a town near Newcastle. Aside from connectivity issues and density of population that are technically versed the main difference I find between North and South is our attitude to social networking. Northerners are friendlier on line and off, there’s less pressure to be politically correct or highbrow. I now follow nearly 500 businesses and we are as likely to be discussing Chilli recipes, shopping, children and pets as our individual businesses. Yes we share links,blogs and plug our businesses but we also share perhaps more of our personal sides than our friends in the South.
There is a real community of businesses in the NE, I have people who follow me purely because they want to support Local businesses, being Local has real Gravitas here. We may bemoan the speed of broadband or rail against the uselessness that is business link funding but in the main we are steadfastly proud to be Northern. Its this feeling of being local and supporting local businesses that has lead me to following and being followed by a wide range and diversity of businesses. I am very curious by nature, how many media types are only friends with other media types and only talk media ?
I have learnt so much from so many different twitterers, from things like SEO and backlinks through to where to go for Sunday lunch and which taxi firms are best. All the networking events, business roadshows and free events are also posted on Twitter and facebook giving you the opportunity to meet off line and also the confidence of knowing you will have virtual friends there. I think those who arent on twitter will all know someone who is and things like going to village halls in Northumberland will posibly be a waste of time and effort, heating bills and travel. Being Rural doesnt mean people are too backward to find the information if it interests them.If they arent online by now, you really cant lead a horse to water…….
I have as is my habit used hundreds of words to say what could be said within 140 characters, apologies for rambling,
Louise
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Thanks for getting over your nervousness and pitching in Louise! Good points all.
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Businesses, yes probably understand the power, or potential of social media in all its many guieses, but individules? Think thats where the drafty hall in Northumberland comes in – Think the huge benifit of being online comes with the understanding of your own brand value as you do with your business…
Am about to hook my 74 year old mum into the net, I’ll set her up a gmail account and Twitter account (which she gets) – but in doing so she can now talk free to my brother (based in Singapore), see pics and videos of her 6 grandchildren, get instant results about the future of her eyesight (macular degeneration), check local bus services without waiting needlessly for hours at a drafty bus stop, purchase stuff on line without the need to battle busy and confusing shops, etc, etc – I think that is very empowering.
And she lives just outside of Reading, the UKs centre of our own Silicon Valley…
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As a relatively late adopter of Twitter it strikes me as a great place to find out stuff. It’s purely another resource…surely that’s the point? Social media alone isn’t going to help charities and non-profits; any organisation or individual needs to have some kind of understanding of how to bolt on the new channels to their existing activity. Maybe I’m stating the obvious – but that how it looks to me.
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I’m coming rather late to this and people have already picked up on some of the points I want to raise. There’s definitely an air in the north of “want to do” rather than want to talk” – as has been mentioned Manchester’s Social Media Cafe is looking to use is its shared knowledge to help communities, non-profits, charities etc. There’s not much endlessly gathering to share know-how if ultimately it’s not harnessed to help those who could use the help.
As an attendee yesterday at Open 09 in Preston, both the sessions I participated in (future of the web and journalism) raised the London and not-London issue, applied to both the London-centric news agenda that leads to ignoring local coverage and also the wealth of digital talent in the north-west that never gets reported on because tech publications focus only on London events and companies in the UK. In reality, I think much of what I’ve seen going on in Manchester and elsewhere up here in the far-from-grim north is at least as vibrant, exciting and creative as anything in the capital, if not more so.
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Hurrah!! 😀
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Apols for all the typos in the above response. I’m flu-ridden and the brain’s not fully compo.
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Directly relevant to the discussion, and going on today:
http://www.niace.org.uk/campaigns-events/events/digital-participation
“Ofcom’s Stewart Purvis will set the scene and outline the overall aim, priorities and strategy for the Consortium to promote the three pillars of digital participation – digital inclusion, digital life skills and digital media literacy.
Representatives from the Office of the Champion for Digital Inclusion, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the BBC will outline their strategies for promoting the pillars of inclusion, skills and media literacy.”
Follow the Amplified team of @warriorgrrl @hannahnicklin @brian_condon & @amandagore on Twitter with #digifuture and #amp09 today.
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I am at the NIACE Digital Participation Event #digifuture
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