Meeting Up or Bowling Alone?

Scott Heiferman joined Prof. Robert Putnam, author of Bowling Alone, to give the keynote for Votes, Bits & Bytes today. Meetup has become the standard-bearer in using the internet to organize people with shared interests. Putnam has written extensively on exactly the opposite trend -- increasing disconnectedness in modern society. Heiferman explained the diverse uses of Meetup, from organizing Ukulele Meetups to local groups of pug owners -- and the potential of the internet to boost collective action. Putnam argued that "the challenge for the Meetup-types of groups is: can they get anywhere close" to level of organization and group cohesion exemplified by church congregations, for example. The solution, Putnam argues, lies in creating alloys that draw on the power of technology to reinforce social connections.