Keen vs. Lessig

In his book The Cult of the Amateur, Andrew Keen presents an elitist argument against the democratization of the internet. He firmly believes that Web 2.0 is a fatal flaw in our society and will eventually lead to our downfall. His language is strong and his opinions are quite extreme. In his book he makes rebuts arguments made by Lawrence Lessig, a professor of law at Stanford University. Lessig in turn created a blog and wiki site to rebut Keen's arguments. He points out major fallacies in his arguments and further accuses Keen of creating an ignorant and sloppy work.

If I was asked to choose a more convincing argument I would definitely side with Lessig. Lessig rebuts arguments intelligently and his use of crude sarcasm ironically makes his argument endearing. Keen's use of overly strong language left me extremely turned off. I was further put off by his elitist attitude. As Lessig notes, "Who is Keen to define what 'taste' is?"

What I found most appealling about Lessig's argument was his final fallacy, the Amateur Fallacy. He notes Keen's traditional definition of an amateur and points out his disgust by the rise of amateurism. Lessig counters this by citing John Phillip Sousa in his lament for the disappearance of the amateur. He notes "What Keen misses is the value to a culture that comes from developing the capacity to create -- independent of the quality created."

Peace, Love
Evan