The Cult of the Keen

Hamburg.
After the coffee break at next09 we're moving on to Andrew Keen, who's made something of a name for himself as a vocal critic of Web 2.0. He begins by responding to the previous two keynote speakers, and agrees with the idea that we're facing profound institutional change, but suggests that their analysis of wher we've come from is skewed. Industrial capitalism 1.0 created masses, created the industrial class, he says, and led to the development of strong hierarchical institutions; this system is now in demise.

But, Andrew suggests, it is difficult to analyse this period of change from within, as a participant. What's happening here, at any rate, is a weakening of institutions (political, corporate, social), and what is replacing them, he claims, is a new kind of radical individualism; Jarvis and Haque are both proponents of this change. He says that the promise here is that this will enable us all to become journalists, doctors, lawyers, astronauts (huh? who seriously claims this? straw man alert!).

Andrew says that the promise of community (but which is it, Andrew - radical indivisualism, or community? seems difficult to have both) associated with this change is not realistic. He notes that free capitalism was only tempered by government intervention - so doing away with the old institutions in the revolution towards capitalism 2.0 will only return to the old problems, not solve them (what this ignores is that community itself is emerging as an institution, of course!).

Put simply, he claims we believe that we can maintain freedom from external intervention by authorities (no, Andrew, we believe that institutions collaboratively run by us are more effective...). And, he says, this isn't going to happen - the big guys, such as Google, will run the show. There is a cult of innovation, a cult of collaboration, he claims. And he adds to this conspiracy theory that the further away he goes from the centre of this 'cult', the more people seem to like what he says (I don't think so). The philosophy underpinning this 'cult' is a American libertarian garbage, he says (well, shouts).

Well, there you go. Quite a belligerent, defensive presentation which seems to argue against claims which the other side has never made; a bit like a creationist at an evolution conference - but kudos to the next09 organisers for having him here. And now, back to reality.

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