Information Inflation

Here's a concept I thought was pertinent to a socialized website like Chess.com - one where we often share or offer-up personal factoids like kids swapping collectable-cards on the playground.

I read it as a part of a larger article about Supreme Court Justice nominee Elena Kagan. The political stuff aside, the piece's writer, Derek Thompson, is coining a phrase Information Inflation to explain why we don't seem to care about the skinny on this nominee. He's better explaining it:

Other pet theory of mine is that social media -- from Facebook profiles to blogs to Twitter streams -- creates what you might call information inflation. In typical inflation, so much money in the system causes the value of each dollar note to fall. In information inflation, so much private speculation, rumor and even semi-scandalous details about our lives flowing through social media tubes and news channels depreciates the value of each revelation. The 24/7 news cycle certainly helps the process by flushing out information with an impressive metabolism. One of the upsides (I hope) of sharing more of our personal thoughts and proclivities online is personal information loses some of its titillating aura.* Stated another way, the rampant publicity of personal information makes the revelation or rumor of somebody's personal information surprisingly, well, mundane.

*The ongoing success of rumor magazines might not support this theory, but I suppose there's a difference between morbidly loving the idea that celebrities are flawed and actually caring that they're gay or sometimes drink too much.

Any opinions on this? Do you think the dirt on you isn't worth the dirt you stand on?

     Well, since we are we supposed to avoid political and religious discussion here I will refrain from a lengthy discussion but I agree Information Inflation is a real
concept.  Just think, NOTHING in the news surprises or shocks us anymore,
which really is the ultimate proof of our "Systematic Desensizitation"  to
the horrific realities of the World.


    

With regard to the 24 hour news cycle, its not only that quantity has increased; quality has decreased. A whole industry has grown up around celebrities that barely existed 30 years ago.

As horrible as murders, fires and other forms of mayhem are, they increasingly consume time that might be better allocated to government or economic issues, for example.

This is partially due to the fact that formerly serious news organizations have been forced to become profit centers and partially due to the fact that there is so much more time to fill on television. The birth of the internet is another factor in this explosion.

I guess we can take solace in the thought that there are also more outlets for artistic expression and hope that beautiful things don't get lost in the white noise.