Nothing new about communications, not really
15:01, 4 December 2009
.. Posted in Communication, Outreach and General Mngmt.. Link
In the winter of 1872, The New York Times printed a letter - one reader’s paean to his favorite breakfast food, "scrapple." Calling himself “EPICURE,” he pronounced the dish—a Spam-like slab of cornmeal and pig parts—both delicious and inexpensive. Later, his recipe ran.
Over the next two weeks, The Times published more than two dozen letters on the subject of scrapple, which, taken together, are a prototype for online food discussion. As this NYT article notes, "It’s all there: the pseudonymous 'usernames,' the off-topic ranting, the preoccupation with pork fat. In short, it’s a modern-day food thread in very slow motion."
"In thoroughly modern fashion, EPICURE’s recipe was almost immediately wikified. PORCUPINE warned against over-frying the scrapple, A HOUSEKEEPER swapped in Graham flour, and MIDDLETOWN gave her method for removing excess grease... Participants in the discussion didn’t just object to scrapple, of course. They also objected to each other."
Honestly, the more I learn about communications and engaging the public -- and I hope I'm always learning -- the more I think that, really, things haven't changed all that much. Certainly people haven't.
