Participation Issues

This is not an attempt to police how people interact with the platform, or punish them for doing things differently. Not why I’m posting this, and not the vibe I’m after.

I’m recently running across a ton of profiles where users will post and post and post - sometimes hundreds of posts a week - yet have 0 or very few comments and Diggs. There may be some value in mass posting, but that’s not why I log in.

If this is the new normal, I’m not asking how we can ‘crack down’ on this, per se. My real question is ~ what can we do to change this behavior organically, sparking real human interaction?

Punitive action may be necessary if there are bot accounts or for those accounts breaching site or community guidelines, etc, but I think we may need a more positive approach to address the lack of meaningful participation.

I don’t know that a lack of participation will ever be resolved entirely, but I feel we can strive to be better. Can’t police the Internet and this place may represent something different for different people.

On an individual level, each of us may need to ask ourselves why we are here on Digg. What’s our endgame and goal in being here? Why do you log in each time you do?

Are you here to foster communities with passion, interaction, and human connection? Or are your goals something else?

I’ve been here since April. There’s been a lot of change and a ton of growth in the space. I’ve connected with some fantastic people here and I’m better for it. I recognize many of you.

Personally, I’m here for the people. I’m here for communities that interest me, with the opportunity to connect with people that care about hobbies and interests that fuel me. I’m here to learn from people that know things that I don’t. I’m here to share in my successes and grow from my failures. I’m here to discover new interests, and new aspects of interests I already have. I’m here to separate from Internet toxicity.

I challenge you to participate. What do you want this place to become? What does Digg mean to you? How will you help it be what you want it to be? What part will you play?