When it comes to digital media, competition can sometimes make writers turn into digital grinches. While it’s healthy to stoke friendly competition and take pride in your work, stonewalling and shoulder checking isn’t really necessary.
The web was built on the notion of sharing ideas and exchanging news. Links, the glue that holds the Internet content train together, are meant to be given freely and awarded to the best and most relevant content. The saying goes that no man is an island, and the same goes for most web sites and blogs, as networking and collaboration are key parts of the growth of pretty much any digital property.
But along the way, there’s been a rise in grinchery. These writers will purposely avoid linking out to sites and blogs that are clearly informing their writing. And rather than quoting their sources, they’ll rewrite their content and reduce the attribution to the vague “according to various reports.”
So why the stinginess? The answer can be summed up by a line in a Michael Jackson song: “Tell ‘em that it’s human nature.”
As more importance has been placed on increasing pageviews and time spent on site, some writers have put themselves before their readers and as a result, become hoardish with their links and compliments. Instead of embracing the diversity of information on the web, they act like they’re the only shop in town and try to ensure that readers never leave the tangled web they’re weaving.
Recently, Sarah Lacy, formerly of TechCrunch, took a firm stand against this trend. When she launched her own tech blog, PandoDaily, Lacy outlined her manifesto in one of the site’s introductory posts to her readership. She made it clear that she sought to correct a wrong she’d seen becoming more prevalent in the blogosphere:
We are insanely competitive. We want to break every story. But we also want to bring more civility into the blogosophere. We’ll link to people who beat us on a story and be good sports about it, as much as it pisses us off. We’ll welcome competitors to cover our events, and we’ll cover theirs.
It all boils down to one thing: Sportsmanship. Just like we were taught to put on a polite face and shake hands with the other team as we picked up our broken spirits and tended to our scraped knees after a particularly brutal game of kickball in elementary school, it’s important to give credit where credit is due and pay compliments when the work warrants it.
As content creators, we all know the good feeling of having someone send you a note remarking about how they appreciate your work. Whether it’s an admired peer congratulating you at a conference, a thankful email from a reader landing in your inbox or a heart-warming tweet from a stranger praising your story telling, everyone likes to be acknowledged.
That’s why when it comes to content creation, I’m generous with my links and when it comes to social media, I’m quick to pay compliments to fellow writers. I recently made it a point to drop a quick note to a technology blogger who I stumbled upon, letting him know that I liked his work and would be keeping up with his posts in the future. He responded in kind and was appreciative of the note.
And before anyone goes getting any funny ideas who should compliment who, paying compliments knows no rank or class. Want an example? How about the president of the United States of America sangin’ a little tune for the Reverend Al Green at a recent fundraiser at the Apollo theater?
There President Obama was, doing his best attempt at Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together” in tribute to the great soul king himself. Fortunately, Obama proved to be capable of carrying a decent tune, though he’s obviously not snatching the American Idol crown any time soon.
As Obama wrapped up his little ditty with a nervous laugh, he explained his humble display simply:
“Don’t worry, Rev, I cannot sing like you. But I just wanted to show my appreciation.”
Content creators, go forth and link freely. Comment on content that moves you and tweet out a compliment or two. It’ll do you and the Internet some good, I promise.
[image via SimpleMom]
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