On the Web: Less Anonymity, More Privacy

Sascha Segan has written a great article for PC magazine about how the Anonymity of the web has hurt communication and collaboration on the web. Here's an excerpt:

Face it, all "anonymity" saves you from is accountability before your peers. It lets people release the worst in themselves through trolling and online fraud, and disconnects people from a reality where you're held responsible for the stupid things you say. It dramatically lowers the reliability of Internet communication, as people can lie without real consequence. It makes Internet-based activism a joke when any online petition can be signed by a thousand sock puppets. Internet users need to face up to the 21st-century truth: What's online can't be separated from "real life." It's all real. It's just life.

Go read the entire article here.

3 Ways to Improve Digg By Opening Up

Digg has garnered a passionate fan-base by allowing the users themselves to have control over the site. With its semi-democratic "digg" system it has given the internet public a tool with which to bring important issues to light - many of which have been ignored by the mainstream media.

While this is good (I am after all, a frequent lurker on the site), there are several ways that it could be improved. I have put together a list of three ideas that I have to make Digg an even more powerful tool for the internet public:

1.) Get Rid of Anonymity - How is Digg ever going to reach the status of being a true democracy if its users can hide behind the veil of their internet user names?

• Digg needs a useful identity verification system which gives assurance to all users that "digging" is being done by real individuals and not simply someone who has paid for the votes.

• People will be less likely to post spam and digg a story without reading it first if they know that their true identity has been revealed to the rest of the users.
  

2.) Create a Spin-off Site For Users under 18 - Because requiring minors to reveal their identity is not feasible, those users need their own site. Beyond this, there are days that I get frustrated by the juvenile comments and story postings. While I understand that there are juvenile users over 18, I believe that a site filled with older members would be less attractive to those who love "Woman Steals Man's Genitals" type stories. As for the mature members under 18...have a system where a reputable member can sponsor a younger member.

3.) Allow new users' submissions to reach the front page - There needs to be a way fro new, fresh faces to be able to submit a story and have even a half-a-chance of reaching the front page - or at least getting a large amount of diggs. Digg clones will keep popping up until newcomers are treated with respect.


The common theme behind these ideas is creating a system that can be less-easily manipulated by those who use Digg solely for personal gain. Opening Digg up can only benefit the user and put more control into their hands.

What do you think?