Push Protesting Getting the word out through the programmable web Tim Farley whatstheharm.net & skeptools.com

what is this about?

getting your message out cheaply

who is it for?

when your message is in opposition to someone or something

protestors (FreeXXXX.com)

advocates (SaveTheXXXX.com)

consumer protection (xxxxSucks.com)

political or religious messages

scientific skepticism

why is this useful?

advertising isn’t cheap

google-bombing does not scale

top 10 links

your site ends up preaching to the choir

what alternative techniques are there?

programmable web

XML & RSS

Microformats

Geocoding & KML

open up your data

opened data can flow by itself

third party web sites (neutral ground)

Importance of tone

key is getting attention without alienating your audience

what is the skeptic movement?

paranormal ghosts alt medical astrology hoaxes scams 9/11 “truth” pseudo-science denialism scientology misinfo UFOs Bigfoot

whatstheharm.net

victim reports

rhetorical tool

research tool

RSS feeds

RSS is not just for blogs!

all sites should publish via RSS

third-party sites will pick up your RSS content

visibility

recommended: FeedBurner.com

Microformat: Geo-coding

GeoRSS

GeoRSS example <item> <guid isPermaLink=&quot;false&quot;>whatstheharm.net.case.number.1170</guid> <link> http://whatstheharm.net/fengshui.html#loh_futt_keong</link> <author>whatstheharm.net</author> <category>feng shui</category> <title>Loh Futt Keong</title> <description>The neighbors both believed in feng shui, but didn't get along with each other. When one put a mirror on their house to reflect bad luck, the other did the same and the feud escalated. The argument ended up in the street with one person dead.</description> <pubDate>Tue, 26 Aug 2008 19:06:00 -0400</pubDate> <georss:point>6.1105 100.362007</georss:point> </item>

KML

KML is Keyhole Markup Language

KML Example <Placemark id=&quot;whatstheharm.net.case.number.1170&quot;> <styleUrl>#case</styleUrl> <name>Loh Futt Keong</name> <description>The neighbors both believed in feng shui, but didn't get along with each other. When one put a mirror on their house to reflect bad luck, the other did the same and the feud escalated. The argument ended up in the street with one person dead.</description> <Snippet maxLines=&quot;1&quot;>Stabbed to death</Snippet> <atom:link href=&quot;http://whatstheharm.net/fengshui.html#loh_futt_keong&quot; /> <Point> <coordinates>100.362007,6.1105</coordinates> </Point> </Placemark>

<Placemark id=&quot;whatstheharm.net.case.number.1170&quot;>

<styleUrl>#case</styleUrl>

<name>Loh Futt Keong</name>

<description>The neighbors both believed in feng shui, but didn't get along with each other. When one put a mirror on their house to reflect bad luck, the other did the same and the feud escalated. The argument ended up in the street with one person dead.</description>

<Snippet maxLines=&quot;1&quot;>Stabbed to death</Snippet>

<atom:link href=&quot;http://whatstheharm.net/fengshui.html#loh_futt_keong&quot; />

<Point>

<coordinates>100.362007,6.1105</coordinates>

</Point>

</Placemark>

Google requires a “Geo Sitemap”

Geo-protesting

Google & Microsoft both use much user content

Yahoo Maps and others are lagging on this

Good for geoprotesting: YouTube Flickr

Bad for geoprotesting: Panoramio Wikipedia (edited sites)

futures

Microformat: hReview (microformats.org)

Restaurant, movie, web site reviews

hReviews can be tied to web site and/or geographic location

Yahoo search starting to support hReview now

Questions?

whatstheharm.net skeptools.com