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The BigThink Tank

email   discuss Posted by Bree Bowman on Feb 20, 2008 at 5:09 PM

A new project called BigThink is making it easier for the public to find reliable, credible information on the Internet, as well as allowing individuals to make their expertise heard on important issues. The digital age offers the public an abundance of information, empowering individuals to make informed decisions on important issues, but the sheer volume of content makes it difficult to discern what’s reliable and what’s not. BigThink provides users with “direct, unfiltered interviews” with thought leaders and experts on a variety of ethical, political and cultural topics and offers the public a multi-media platform to respond to what these experts have to say.

Discussion topics on the site range in theme, from the abstract (“What is Happiness?”, or “Should We Embrace or Reject our Differences”), to opinion (“Would a Black President help Race Relations”), to political and cultural analysis (“What should be the big issues of the 2008 presidential election?”). Each discussion features a video interview with an “expert” selected by the BigThink team based on “a range of factors, including a person’s body of published work, peer recommendations, professional honors, and popular interest,” though the website also accepts recommendations from its users. An interactive polling feature accompanies each of the videos, allowing the public to weigh in on what the expert has said. Users can take their response a step further, either by submitting their own original “idea” to start a new discussion topic, a text-based question to an existing topic, or by submitting their own video response, all with the goal of “mov[ing] the discussion away from talking heads and talking points, and give it back to you [the public].”

The project offers a compelling platform for the public to place their own creative content in a space that privileges their viewpoints alongside those of people who are considered to be experts. BigThink allows members of the public to represent themselves through a variety of media. The site does provide some guidelines on the types of ideas that can be submitted to ensure the quality and integrity of the content, an aspect of the project that distinguishes it from other participatory platforms like YouTube.

Those who offer video content and opinion do tend to possess a certain level of expertise, raising questions of how truly representative the content is of the public at large. However, the site does offer content from a variety of people from all corners of society, making it a compelling collection of information for the public to consider as it forms opinions on important social issues. BigThink’s multi-media, participatory format provides an original approach to informing the public and creating rich dialogue.

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