h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

When I first started reading the _New York Times_ on the Web, there were links at the end of articles for off-site content related to the story. One of my favorite international relations journals, _Foreign Policy_, also includes a "What to Know More?" section at the end of articles. The _Times_ has stopped the practice. I suppose for much the same reason that the BBC is moderating URLs on h2g2; the hassles of broken links, links to "dangerous" and dubious places, providing easy access that leads people *away* from their site. I was disappointed that the _Times_ dropped the links. I find I don't read the _New York Times_ online as much now.

The next sentence I write will bring a sensation close to fingernails on a blackboard. There is something to be said for Yahoo News. I never thought I would be saying this, but for the person wanting to get the headlines, I *think* I would rather see them go here first. Let me say that this is a very new thought and I haven't fully expanded it to look at consequences. However, I like that there is a "Full Coverage" panel for each article that leads to other news articles from a variety of sources including _NY Times_ and BBC. There is also a set of links for magazine articles, audio, video and related Web sites. As anyone who surfs the Web knows, once you start following links, you often end up reading something totally unrelated and wondering "how did I get from A to X?" That is the beauty of the Internet. It makes it so easy to broaden your information base. Of course, many people don't have the time to be wandering around the Web, but Yahoo makes that luxury available to those who do want to know more.

Now, Yahoo does not have this "want to know more" technique perfected. Far from it! The related stories and Web site links are often totally inappropriate because of Yahoo's habit of rolling over all the material from stories with a similar topic. For example, a recent article on the British Royal Air Force spotting the wreckage of US fighter plane in Scotland also includes links to sexual harassment in the military. You have to go well into the "More" sections to get to those links, but it is quite jarring to come upon them when you have just read about two missing pilots and you think of their families waiting for news back in the States.

Also, the message boards are atrocious, mostly inane commentary that is impossible to follow even if you wanted to because of the way the messages are set up. Because the site is so large, there isn't a sense of community and I don't think message boards work well without community. They just become free-for-alls. I like h2g2 because for every post here, there is a "My Space" page that goes with the poster. It is a community. When we post messages, we know our opinion is not really anonymous. Our personal space lets the rest of the community know a bit about us, sometimes a tiny bit, sometimes a lot of bit. It saddens me that our community cannot be trusted to be respectful of others. I do morn the loss of URLs in posts (making a link page is an option, but not one I find useful). Not allowing languages other than English is just as upsetting. I hope both issues are given deeper consideration.

I've digressed a bit from what I wanted to write about, which is finding a way to encourage smart media. I don't think Yahoo is smart media, but it does point in the right direction. Give people the headlines and point them in the direction to learn more about a topic. People who are informed are more likely to be politically motivated. That doesn't mean they are going to write letters to Congress, take a cause in protest, or even vote, but it sure ups the chances that they might do those things.

I agree with mourning (I checked the spelling ) the loss of URL's in posts. It sort of defeats the object of rapid information exchange and as you rightly point out, any post is identified by a space. I hope over time this shotgun approach to moderation will change because in all my 12 months of trawling through h2g2 fora I never came across an offensive link. Maybe I just didn't hang out in the right places .

Darn. Must have left that "u" out or "mourn" as some kind of rejection of British spelling....

From what I have been reading on the site, it doesn't seem likely the URLs will be allowed. But, Peta is really stressed with all the complaints about moderation (read a post somewhere from her asking people to lay off) so I'll just sit tight for a while and see what happens.

I never came across an offensive link, either, though I tried real hard to find them

And don't you dare note the "or" instead of "of" in the above post or I will have to go find some duct tape.

:-X

must read soon

the man from del monte says yes