On 6/21/07, Marc Riddell <michaeldavid86(a)comcast.net> wrote:
on 6/19/07 7:48 PM, Ray Saintonge at
saintonge(a)telus.net wrote:
What leadership structure? Sometimes I believe
that the leadership is
only suitable for drawing and quartering. I often have the impression
that we live in a culture of distrust, and that this infects much of our
activity, whether on Wikipedia or esewhere.
What leadership structure? Precisely. This is what I have been trying to
drive home for some time now.
A community without strong, definable leadership produces a culture of
"everyone for themselves". This is true whether in Wikipedia or the world at
large. It becomes the very familiar "survival of the fittest". And "who
can
you trust?" becomes the pervading question.
Online communities have, however, successfully self-organized around
people that are trusted and put forwards (or put themselves forwards)
as leaders.
I've said this several times before: If actively contribute to threads
on Wikien-L, you're probably an English Wikipedia leader, whether you
consider yourself one or not.
--
-george william herbert
george.herbert(a)gmail.com