Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Why Does Open Access Matter?
As a communications design professional, I first discovered open access in the form of software. But in practice, I have been involved with open-access information and publishing since I was in high school cutting and pasting together zines. We went so far as to “merge” with a group from another high school that also had a zine so that we could increase our reach when we handed out the free rags.
Later I applied this concept as a hobby in Juneau, but increased the open aspect by soliciting all of the content from the community. By then technology had advanced enough that I wasn’t cutting, pasting and photocopying the zines ... but I still tried to keep a little of that rough aesthetic as homage to one of the first forms of self-made media.
As mainstream media embraces the DIY media tools spawned after zines, but instead uses the content to target (or create) advertising, I can’t help but wonder if this will unintentionally expand the groups that create media and push open-access creation of new tools.
Media participation supported by others, such as using open-access software for blogs or even building an ad with pieces provided by a corporation, could be a way of entry leading to further exploration with media creation. Zines began with letters to magazine editors. Once science fiction magazines began printing these letters with contact information for the writers, communities began to spring up between these fans. In a similar manner, participation through the foundations of existing media outlets can allow for networking and growth. However, it is in the later stages of participation that individuals are able to combine the developed domain-relevant skills with creativity-relevant skills to begin producing their own media products. How many will go the way of open access?
The way I see it there are many many aspects of open access. It’s not just about Wikipedia or sharing publicly funded research—it’s about both public and expert information. Some fear that replacing expert knowledge with mass-conceived data in places like Wikipedia will be the end of culture. Others see the same tool as democratic and offering a way to expand knowledge.
Offering scientific, medical, and technology research in an open-access format allows the public to see what the experts are doing. It also encourages involvement with these fields in a way that has not been open to the public previously. Being exposed to research, or at least having it available to anyone interested, encourages understanding of important issues at the local and global level. In turn, access to tools where non-expert information can be shared furthers these discussions.
Open-access media is the final step in the circle. It provides a way to communicate the information through distribution, discussion, and integration with other information.
In celebration of the first Open Access Day I’ve compiled a list of open-access psychology and media sources. Read them, interact with them, make your own:
