I also anticipate a ‘new’ form of anonymity will...

I also anticipate a ‘new’ form of anonymity will continue to gain popularity online. I term this “functional anonymity.” Functional anonymity in the real world is nothing new – it’s how most voting systems work. You can only vote if you’re registered with a name and address, but your vote cannot be traced back to you. Online services such as Quora, Honestly, and several blog comment systems are already showing the value of letting people post anonymously if they have already proven their identity. Functional anonymity will create a whole new communication ecosystem allowing for incredible frankness and openness. I anticipate this new form of anonymous expression will be very interesting and contentious as people come to experience it’s benefits and shortcomings.

SXSW 2012 Q&A: Ted Rheingold - Scatter/Gather: a Razorfish blog about content strategy, pop culture and human behavior

tedr:

Functional anonymity is one of the most interesting spaces online to me right now.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: while I call it “managed” anonymity rather than “functional,” we’re only now starting to catch on to the power of an idea that was used to incredible effect in the Urban Baby forums nearly a decade ago.

Update: turns out that I started ranting about this all the way back in 2006.

(via whitneymcn)

tedr: Nice!

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