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August 4, 2012
TED is no longer a responsible curator of ideas “worth spreading.” Instead it has become something ludicrous, and a little sinister.
Today TED is an insatiable kingpin of international meme laundering— a place where ideas, regardless of their quality, go to seek celebrity, to live in the form of videos, tweets, and now e-books. In the world of TED—or, to use their argot, in the TED “ecosystem”—books become talks, talks become memes, memes become projects, projects become talks, talks become books—and so it goes ad infinitum in the sizzling Stakhanovite cycle of memetics, until any shade of depth or nuance disappears into the virtual void. Richard Dawkins, the father of memetics, should be very proud. Perhaps he can explain how “ideas worth spreading” become “ideas no footnotes can support.” -- Evgeny Morozov: The Naked And The TED | The New Republic
Posted by gerardvanderleun at August 4, 2012 8:39 AM. This is an entry on the sideblog of American Digest: Check it out.
Your Say
It was inevitable.
Posted by: Casca at August 4, 2012 10:12 AM
Coolness destroys again.
Posted by: Jewel at August 4, 2012 10:50 AM
If The New Republic says so, then maybe I oughta watch some of them.
Posted by: Sam L. at August 4, 2012 12:32 PM
Poor baby; life evolves,therefor TED has to stink.
Posted by: Alan Kellogg at August 4, 2012 12:57 PM
Must say I've enjoyed some TED videos. That said, I have seen a few that are a lot like the books mentioned. Like everything else in life - not all ideas are equal. Some thinking and discrimination is required. I'll still keep watching the vids and do my own thinking.
Posted by: Jimmy J. at August 4, 2012 7:54 PM
That world of TED progression sounds like it was lifted straight from Alice's Restaurant. The only thing they missed was "and then it becomes a movement". I hope they thanked Arlo for the inspiration..
Posted by: Cripes Suzette at August 5, 2012 6:19 AM
A lot of educated Indians - probably because of a residual religious (Buddhist) influence - worship the abstract. Sometimes it works out, if the guy is really, really smart, but usually it results in meaningless guff. As in this case.
Posted by: Brett_McS at August 5, 2012 7:31 PM
Is Is it ok if I copy your entry in part,I will reference back to your website?
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