What have we learnt from Carte Blanche’s Web 2.0 documentary?

I’ve noticed some mixed reviews from influential bloggers and internet strategists on the Carte Blache documentary about the “Web 2.0” revolution aired last night.
Many questions were left unanswered according to Nic Haralambous, where he asks what exactly the quote “The pace of change has exceeded our ability to keep up” means and to who they were referring to.
Another obvious question was centered on all the internet buzzwords like Mxit, Facebook, Twitter and the vague or non-existent attempt at explaining what these are during the programme. “There was no definition of what web 1.0 was, never mind what web 2.0 is and where it’s headed.”
It seems from reports that people (regular, non internet thought leaders) were left still confused and uncertain to what Web 2.0 entails.
From a previous discussion I had with Tyler Reed and some others to a lesser extent, my answer to these probing questions is simply, what does it matter?
Through a medium like television or the “old media” as it is referred to, what is blatantly obvious is the audience they’re adressing: The older generation, many of who probably has no interest in where this is heading or the impact it will have on their lives.
What is of importance is the influence it has on their children and a future that is as uncertain as the ones before.
Web 1.0 and 2.0 are merely phrases the internet strategists has coined to encapsulate a change in consumer behaviour, a change not enforced by them mind you, but a change brought about by entrepreneurs and strategists around the world.
We’re not seeing consumers changing society, but they’re now leading the way because of advanced technolgy enabling them to do so. This has caused businesses to adopt or ultimately…be left out.
What is the impact of the Carte Blanche documentary? Honestly, I believe not too much and I doubt any difference in their approach or clarification of terms and phrases would’ve changed that.
What they attempted was to mash up various technologies and bring in an element of cool, a concept almost certainly lost on the majority of their target audience. I believe a 20 minute interview with either Rafiq Philips or Dave Duarte would’ve explained new media in a better way.
However, I doubt the impact would have been different. Our consumers are nonchalant in the jargon we publish. They are completely oblivious to the mechanics behind the scenes. And they certainly don’t care.
As long as we, the technology and service providers, keep producing innovative platforms that allow them to express themselves to a wider, more diverse and controversial spectrum of people and brands are smart enough to adopt these in their marketing strategies, there’s little else we need to evangelise.
Whether we term that Web 3.0 or semantic web, is beside the point. All that is important from this documentary is that we’ve established a vantage point of rapid change. We’ve opened the technological can of worms and have broken down the barriers that were once standing firm in protecting a society from outside influence.
Do we need to educate the Carte Blanche audience on the changes they are witnessing? Yes, but only to those that are interested in the change and the next generation that would truly be living in the digital era.
For them, the programme has sparked a big enough interest to further their knowledge

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