You ARE the alternative media.

( I wrote this in 2008 and just came across it again. I thought it might be interesting to see where we are almost 10 years later.)

If you post here, or at dkoz, or America blog, or digby, or a thousand other sites, whether you have your own blog or just comment on someone else's blog, you are contributing to the alternative media.

If you want to take down the mainstream media, and if you want to make the alternative media stronger, post credible stuff at the places where you hang out. Take responsibility for your words. Just because you type them in the privacy of your own home doesn't mean you can type whatever you want without repercussions. We can see what you do!

Believe your words mean something and maybe they will. Tell jokes; fine. Be snarky and even mean. Do whatever you want to do, but understand that whatever you type contributes to the character of the community you are participating in. If you- and enough others- choose to post inane, thoughtless crap, then the community you inhabit will become full of inane, thoughtless crap. If you want to make a difference, if you want your community to have some influence, if you want a revolution, if you want to really be heard, type your words with that in mind.

If you believe that your one vote out of 150 million counts for something, then you must also believe that your one post out of 30,000 today must count for something too. Make it count for something worthwhile. We are standing on the brink of an unprecedented opportunity. We really can take back the media. We are all authors and publishers and editors. There are no gatekeepers anymore. But if we clutter up our newfound arena with too much garbage, we will have missed an almost unbelievable opportunity to advance democracy and really change the political process.

We could just not worry about it and let the internet forums and blogs devolve to scamming for more traffic or be just a place for drunken graffiti (much like the mainstream media) but we can do better. Robert Kennedy once said that a million acts of courage can tear down the mightiest walls of oppression. In the same way, a million passionate, thoughtful posts on a thousand blogs can shake the foundations of how we get our information. Make it happen. The time is now.


You have the power.