Examples of Online Culture and Communities

I have been online since 1994, and back then, the media seldom, if ever, wrote about the Internet -- probably because there weren't yet lots of online horror stories to report.

Since then, the Internet has brought me in touch with many wonderful people and ideas, personally and professionally. Based on my work as VV Project manager and my personal experiences, I believe that online experiences often lead to increased volunteerism and face-to-face interaction, and that there are thousands -- millions -- of people out there using the Internet to make a difference in the health and well-being of their families, their communities, and the causes they love.

These many, many positive cyber experiences stand in stark contrast to two widely-cited studies that implied the Internet makes people depressed and isolated from friends and family. I think these studies are quite flawed and downright misleading, and I think the media hype around the studies' findings is inaccurate and sensationalist (the Online Journalism Review apparently agrees with me, per their article "Media Reporting on Internet Studies Misses Fundamental Problems").

There also seems to be an endless number of letters to Ann Landers and Dear Abby about how "The Internet Broke up my Marriage!!", and many people interviewed on major TV networks were quick to try to somehow connect the Littleton, Colorado school shootings to Internet use.

I'm very tired of reading how the Internet is making us all lonely and cranky. I was lonely and cranky long before the Internet came along (grin).

To counter these negative stories, this section of the VV Project site offers information and essays to illustrate how cyberspace is bringing us together, not closing us off to each other.

 
Section Contents:

    The Latest:
  • Twang in Cyberspace:
    How one music-related online community
    blurs the line between "real" and "virtual"
    When does an online community become just "a community"? This profile of Postcard 2 (P2) shows how hard it can be to fit a group into one category or another. Also offers good tips for anyone looking to establish or maintain an online community, or to use the Internet to organize a face-to-face event with volunteers scattered geographically.

     

  • Safeplace in Cyberspace: How Austin, Texas netizens and
    a nonprofit make a difference using the Internet
    An essay by a communiations professional who volunteers her time for a domestic violence and sexual assault prevention center. This is more than a story of how the Internet helps people make a difference; it also is a powerful testimonial to how to effectively donate professional services, and how well a balance of face-to-face and online volunteering can work.

     

  • Supporting Expectant Mothers Anywhere Via E-mail
    A nonprofit organization matches online volunteers with pregnant women coping with long term hospitalization or home bedrest, pregnancy complications, leaving a job or "normal" life due to pregnancy complications, etc. Testimonials from those served by this organization illustrate to the power and importance of e-mail support.

     

  • Fan-Based Online Groups Use the Internet to Make a Difference
    Many of these online groups aren't directed by any formal organization to engage in philanthropy; the fans decided to engage in these activities on their own. Includes examples of such groups, with comments from members regarding their online philanthropic activities and what makes them successful.

 
Related materials:
  • Building an Internet Culture
    "In thinking about culturally appropriate ways of using technologies like the Internet, the best starting-point is with people -- coherent communities of people and the ways they think together. " An excellent essay by Phil Agree that discusses the importance of social networking to job development and performation, how the Internet provides a great opportunity for such networking, and how cyberspace needs to be promoted as a place for social interaction and prevented from becoming a corporate wasteland. Many real world examples of such social networking that have assisted companies and individuals are given, even ways in which developing countries can use the internet to the advantage of itself and its people.

     

  • First Person: Benefits of Virtual Volunteering
    for People With Disabilities
    The Virtual Volunteering Project has received several testimonials from people with disabilities serving as online volunteers for various organizations, showing how virtual volunteering creates new opportunities for people who might otherwise not get to participate in community service.

     

  • Pew Internet and American Life Project release report
    showing the Internet is of social benefit to many users
    and showing a surge of women onto the Internet
    New York Times Article
    This study released May 10, 2000 indicates the Internet may actually strengthening users' family ties. Internet users in the study reported far more offline social contact than non-users. Women in particular said they found e-mail very useful in keeping in touch with friends and family. "It's clear that Internet users have a more robust social network than non-Internet users," said Lee Rainie, director of the project. "There doesn't seem like there's any diminution of social networks because people are spending a lot of time online." Nearly half of Internet users reported that they had a social network, but only 38 percent of non-users did. The more years respondents had been going online, the more likely they were to report that they had a social network.

     

  • Examples of Experiences Involving Online Volunteers and Youth With Disabilities
    An index of real-life examples of how volunteers and youth with disabilities are interacting with others via Cyberspace, illustrating some of the limitless possibilities and benefits of virtual volunteering.

     

  • Online Culture
    A brief how-to to help you learn the different styles of "personalities" online, interpret people's written communications and assist volunteers and managers alike in being clear and effective online. Includes links to other Web sites with information about online culture and online psychology, inculding academic researchers' information.

 
We welcome other's information on an organization or activity that reflects the positive side of online culture and Internet use. Your submission will be reviewed and we will contact you about possibly writing a story about your activities (or inviting you to write your own essay). Your submission should:
  • Provide complete contact information (full names, e-mail addresses and, as appropriate, organization affiliation) for the chief organizers involved in these activities

  • Provide, as apparopriate, examples of how the Internet enhances and even encourages face-to-face encounters

  • Illustrate how cyberspace is bringing us together, not closing us off to each other

  • Show how the Internet has lead to an increase in community activity, particularly community service

  • Illustrate how the Internet is improving or enhancing our quality of life (for instance, Benefits of Virtual Volunteering for People With Disabilities

  • Identify and summarize what makes the organization's community engagement, volunteerism or philanthropy via the Internet successful (tips for other organization's interested in such).

--

I have been online since 1994, and back then, the media seldom, if ever, wrote about the Internet -- probably because there weren't yet lots of online horror stories to report.

Since then, the Internet has brought me in touch with many wonderful people and ideas, personally and professionally. Based on my work as VV Project manager and my personal experiences, I believe that online experiences often lead to increased volunteerism and face-to-face interaction, and that there are thousands -- millions -- of people out there using the Internet to make a difference in the health and well-being of their families, their communities, and the causes they love.

These many, many positive cyber experiences stand in stark contrast to two widely-cited studies that implied the Internet makes people depressed and isolated from friends and family. I think these studies are quite flawed and downright misleading, and I think the media hype around the studies' findings is inaccurate and sensationalist (the Online Journalism Review apparently agrees with me, per their article "Media Reporting on Internet Studies Misses Fundamental Problems").

There also seems to be an endless number of letters to Ann Landers and Dear Abby about how "The Internet Broke up my Marriage!!", and many people interviewed on major TV networks were quick to try to somehow connect the Littleton, Colorado school shootings to Internet use.

I'm very tired of reading how the Internet is making us all lonely and cranky. I was lonely and cranky long before the Internet came along (grin).

To counter these negative stories, this section of the VV Project site offers information and essays to illustrate how cyberspace is bringing us together, not closing us off to each other.

 
Section Contents:

    The Latest:
  • Twang in Cyberspace:
    How one music-related online community
    blurs the line between "real" and "virtual"
    When does an online community become just "a community"? This profile of Postcard 2 (P2) shows how hard it can be to fit a group into one category or another. Also offers good tips for anyone looking to establish or maintain an online community, or to use the Internet to organize a face-to-face event with volunteers scattered geographically.

     

  • Safeplace in Cyberspace: How Austin, Texas netizens and
    a nonprofit make a difference using the Internet
    An essay by a communiations professional who volunteers her time for a domestic violence and sexual assault prevention center. This is more than a story of how the Internet helps people make a difference; it also is a powerful testimonial to how to effectively donate professional services, and how well a balance of face-to-face and online volunteering can work.

     

  • Supporting Expectant Mothers Anywhere Via E-mail
    A nonprofit organization matches online volunteers with pregnant women coping with long term hospitalization or home bedrest, pregnancy complications, leaving a job or "normal" life due to pregnancy complications, etc. Testimonials from those served by this organization illustrate to the power and importance of e-mail support.

     

  • Fan-Based Online Groups Use the Internet to Make a Difference
    Many of these online groups aren't directed by any formal organization to engage in philanthropy; the fans decided to engage in these activities on their own. Includes examples of such groups, with comments from members regarding their online philanthropic activities and what makes them successful.

 
Related materials:
  • Building an Internet Culture
    "In thinking about culturally appropriate ways of using technologies like the Internet, the best starting-point is with people -- coherent communities of people and the ways they think together. " An excellent essay by Phil Agree that discusses the importance of social networking to job development and performation, how the Internet provides a great opportunity for such networking, and how cyberspace needs to be promoted as a place for social interaction and prevented from becoming a corporate wasteland. Many real world examples of such social networking that have assisted companies and individuals are given, even ways in which developing countries can use the internet to the advantage of itself and its people.

     

  • First Person: Benefits of Virtual Volunteering
    for People With Disabilities
    The Virtual Volunteering Project has received several testimonials from people with disabilities serving as online volunteers for various organizations, showing how virtual volunteering creates new opportunities for people who might otherwise not get to participate in community service.

     

  • Pew Internet and American Life Project release report
    showing the Internet is of social benefit to many users
    and showing a surge of women onto the Internet
    New York Times Article
    This study released May 10, 2000 indicates the Internet may actually strengthening users' family ties. Internet users in the study reported far more offline social contact than non-users. Women in particular said they found e-mail very useful in keeping in touch with friends and family. "It's clear that Internet users have a more robust social network than non-Internet users," said Lee Rainie, director of the project. "There doesn't seem like there's any diminution of social networks because people are spending a lot of time online." Nearly half of Internet users reported that they had a social network, but only 38 percent of non-users did. The more years respondents had been going online, the more likely they were to report that they had a social network.

     

  • Examples of Experiences Involving Online Volunteers and Youth With Disabilities
    An index of real-life examples of how volunteers and youth with disabilities are interacting with others via Cyberspace, illustrating some of the limitless possibilities and benefits of virtual volunteering.

     

  • Online Culture
    A brief how-to to help you learn the different styles of "personalities" online, interpret people's written communications and assist volunteers and managers alike in being clear and effective online. Includes links to other Web sites with information about online culture and online psychology, inculding academic researchers' information.

 
We welcome other's information on an organization or activity that reflects the positive side of online culture and Internet use. Your submission will be reviewed and we will contact you about possibly writing a story about your activities (or inviting you to write your own essay). Your submission should:
  • Provide complete contact information (full names, e-mail addresses and, as appropriate, organization affiliation) for the chief organizers involved in these activities

  • Provide, as apparopriate, examples of how the Internet enhances and even encourages face-to-face encounters

  • Illustrate how cyberspace is bringing us together, not closing us off to each other

  • Show how the Internet has lead to an increase in community activity, particularly community service

  • Illustrate how the Internet is improving or enhancing our quality of life (for instance, Benefits of Virtual Volunteering for People With Disabilities

  • Identify and summarize what makes the organization's community engagement, volunteerism or philanthropy via the Internet successful (tips for other organization's interested in such).

--
"ALL communities are good, supportive things, whether they happen face-to-face or over e-mail. People make people more isolated. Saying the internet makes people more isolated is like saying pencils make people more isolated. Also, if you're the only person in Springfield who makes civil war figures out of marzipan - you can probably find more people with the same hobby easier on the Internet than by wandering the streets. This is good. You've created a community."

Chris Knaus
P2 community member

 
Many researchers and reporters study and write about online or "virtual" communities as completely separate from in-person communities. But how would they categorize Postcard2, an online community that spurs so many offline activities, large and small, that the lines between offline and online community are quite blurred?

Postcard2 -- also known as P2 or Passenger Side -- is a discussion group via e-mail that focuses on Americana music, a genre which goes by various names, including No Depression music (from the Carter family song of the same name), twang core, insurgent country, alternative country and many others (in fact, "what do we call this music" is frequently debated on the list). Americana music includes a variety of artists and styles that fall into gray areas too "rock and roll" or "retro" for country stations and too country for rock stations, from pioneers like Johnny Cash and Gram Parsons, to modern day performers such as Steve Earle or Lucinda Williams. Rockabilly, bluegrass and old-time country performers are also usually categorized fit under the Americana genre as well.

Members of P2 talk and debate about shows at venues throughout the U.S. (and, sometimes, outside the country), CDs, publications, favorite (and not-so-favorite) bands, the various influences on Americana music, and business trends that can affect performers and fans. Members are mostly music lovers from non-music-related professions, as well as professional and amateur musicians, music writers, music retailers, radio programmers, DJs and "industry weasels" (those who work for established music and entertainment companies and publications).

P2 started in 1995, and there are now more than 700 members of the online community. The vast majority are "lurkers": people who read but do not post messages to the list. Most members found out about P2 from articles about "alt.country" in newspapers or other publications, from another online community (usually the No Depression board on America Online or a bluegrass discussion group), or while looking for information on the Web about country music, blues, rock and roll history, and so on.

What is particularly interesting about the P2 online community is that, over the years, hundreds of its members -- frequent posters and lurkers alike -- have regularly engaged in meetings offline, and their initial connection to each other came from this list. From gatherings of members in the same city at music clubs, to securing a lineup of Americana bands at a particular venue, to forming a nonprofit organization and producing an annual music festival in St. Louis called Twangfest, P2 members consistently buck the usual stereotypes many researchers and reporters have tried to assign online community members: people using online interactions to substitute for in-person encounters, people going out less than before the Internet, and so forth.

"I have made many good friends from my involvement on this list," says Laura Dear, a research librarian and P2 member in Chicago, Illinois. "I suppose I meet up with fellow P2ers on a monthly basis. I've hosted parties and hooked up with people before and during shows. This is a very friendly group."

"Increasingly, the experience of meeting with P2ers resembles any other meeting with friends -- close friends that you don't see all that often," says Amy Haugesag, an online community manager for a for-profit company, and also of Chicago. "I'm not embarrassed to say that P2 has been the main source of my social life for a considerable part of the last five years. As a female music fan, I always felt a little isolated, because I had very few female friends who were as passionate about music as I was, and many guys never knew quite what to make of a girl who was as passionate about music as they were. P2 has provided me with a whole slew of fellow travelers, men and women, who share the passion -- who 'get it.'"

"Through P2 I have established relationships with a number of people in a number of different cities," says John Wendland, who works in the telecommunications industry and as a musician of St. Louis, Missouri. "I find myself being offered a myriad of different places to stay in different cities, and I have put up people from P2 at my house on numerous occasions. Having some common ground before meeting people for the first time -- a love of music -- seems to pretty much take away any awkwardness that would otherwise result from a first time meeting."

"I meet with someone from P2 at least two or three times a month, and for the past year or so I've met with groups of them about every three or four months or so," says Bill Silvers, a customer service supervisor in Kansas City, Missouri. "Those meetings are special, exciting, frustrating, nervous making, exhilarating, and drunken, to use just a few of the applicable adjectives. I've met and gotten close to a lot of terrific people that I would never have had the opportunity to have met before the creation of the Internet-P2-Twangfest. Simply, it's given me an opportunity to meet and interact with dozens of like-minded people, and has become a primary source of intellectual, emotional and personal interaction for me."

"I see P2 folks multiple times per week - sometimes even in non-musical situations," says Chris "C.K." Knaus of Nashville, Tennessee. "It's nice to go to a show by yourself and know that there will be at least one other person there you know, or at least recognize. Also, since I used to travel for work, I often would get the low-down on a new city from a P2 person and try to meet up at a show or two. This is a very cool way to travel. It's not P2 friends vs. my 'real' friends - it works itself into one big group, sorta. There's still private jokes in different groups and stuff like that - but that's no different than having friends from school and friends from the coffee shop."

"I've been to four or so group gatherings of P2 people, but I have met up with other P2 people at various shows in different cities," says Maggie Mazur, who works in digital prepress operations in Des Moines, Iowa. "The one-on-one meetings are easier, because you can meet and chat and then go about your business if you so desire. You have specific things you've e-mailed about or posted about that you can talk about. It's not like meeting a complete stranger at a bar, because with this, you already have a base line association."

"Because of P2, there is actually an alt-country scene in Boston now," says Marie Arsenault, a marketing consultant and booking agent, formerly of New England and now of Nashville, Tennessee. "Also, even though some of us lived within blocks of each other, we never would have met without P2. I met my now-house mate/landlord on P2. Many of my Nashville friends I met through P2 as well. I see them a few times a week. I also get together with what we affectionately call the 'Travelling Circus' about once every few months in some city in the U.S. I meet with the Twangfest Committee -- I'm also on the board-- about every three months in St. Louis. I don't like referring to these folks as my 'P2 friends.' Because there is no difference between them and friends I meet in other ways. Hanging with the folks I met through P2 always means lots of music, lots of laughs, lots of hugs, lots of love. They're true kindred spirits. Hanging out with these folks is one of the real joys of my life."

"Besides the annual gatherings that have become a regular part of lots of peoples' calendars, there have been, at varying times, enough list members right here in not-very-country New York City that we started to go to shows together regularly," says Barry Mazor, a multimedia trade publication editor. "We have even spun off a regular series of 'P2 in New York' shows at a local bar. I see some of these people regularly now, even when music isn't involved, and in the case of one lady, really often when anything at all is involved. The involvement in this community has led to my writing about (music) subjects professionally again -- which has been more pleasant than I would have figured! Day-to-day involvement with P2 and its people has tended to respark hankerings to do these things. It's been re-energizing. There have even been moments of contact with people I hadn't heard from for years that have been touching and which could only happen via the Net."

 
The Culture of P2 and
the pitfalls of e-mail-only communication

"There are internet lists, like one called postcard2, where the faithful debate fine points of alt.country minutiae like obsessive honky-tonk Trotskyites."

Peter Applebome
New York Times
April 15, 2000

The P2 online community is always lively, with tempers flaring and jokes flying back and forth about everything from the impact of communism on Woodie Guthrie's music to "Hee Haw." Many people who now post frequently to P2 report a shaky start the first time they tried to participate.

"My blood pressure would raise and heart rate quicken when I first read others' posts regarding music I held so dearly to my heart," says Dear. "I was living on the East Coast at this time and did not have many friends and certainly not many who enjoyed my favorite Texas singer/songwriters, rockabilly artists, country/honkytonk artists, etc. I lurked for awhile and then posted once and remember getting shot down by a couple of members about whatever the hell I was trying to say. That scared me off for a little while."

"Someone told me a review I wrote was a topic of discussion, so I joined out of curiosity," says James "Slim" Kelly of Atlanta, Georgia, a PhD candidate in clinical psychology, a behavior analyst consultant, an instructor at Georgia State University, and a part time music critic and musician. "I jumped right in trying to defend myself. I put my foot way deep in my own mouth several times before I figured out the protocol. Got called a lot of names, pissed a lot of people off, then had to redeem my self by talking smart about a few things. Now I put my foot only halfway in my mouth most of the time, but feel ok about doing it."

Even with his contentious start on P2, Kelly has strong positive feelings about the community. "It has been a pleasant experience across the board. I have not met a P2 person (face-to-face) I didn't like."

"When I went to Austin, Texas for an internship interview, I posted on P2 that I was coming and asked for some info about shows in Austin that weekend," he recalls. "I received about 10 private responses, each listing shows and several with phone numbers and invitations to meet for a drink, etc. I contacted several of the people who sent numbers, met them in person, and when I got the internship I had a ready made group of friends in Austin when I got there. They were my support during a very tough year, as I had separation problems, the internship was initially very stressful, my Dad was seriously ill for a while, and I got physically ill (and got better with a little help from my friends). The Austin P2ers and their friends literally saved my life, and helped me survive what could have been a disaster. I will always remember their kindness and acceptance, and will return that to others whenever I get the chance."

Part of P2's reputation for members sounding harsh may come from the nature of debate via written communication. "Dealing with disagreements and thoroughly hashing out contentious issues can be tough by e-mail" says Mark Wyatt of Columbus, Ohio, a professional editor, a member of a bluegrass band, and a Twangfest organizer. "Things come out more harshly sometimes than you mean them to. Which is why it's great to periodically see lots of the folks you write to; it helps restore the balance."

"I pretty much find that if I like the person from their e-mail, I like the person when I meet him or her," adds Wyatt. "The converse is not always true; some of the more contentious folks online are much nicer in person."

"While 99% of the people I've met in this community have been wonderful, there is always the exception," says Arsenault. "It's sometimes easy to forget that you really don't know someone that you communicate with through e-mail. Even if you're e-mailing this person 10 times a day, you don't really know the person. Nothing can replace that face-to-face contact. The P2ers that I've become friends with are the ones I spend real time with. Even the occasional visit makes a difference." P2 is moderated by Don Yates, a radio station program director in Seattle, Washington. On P2, this amateur country music historian has been friendly but quite outspoken.

"I've mixed it up with a lotta folks, but usually even the heated disagreements ended with expressions of mutual respect," says Yates. "I'm pretty sociable in general, and P2 is just one part --albeit an important one-- of an active social life. I still don't understand why some folks seem to get all fearful about posting, and get all freaked out if someone disagrees with 'em. Variety's the spice of life, and I love playing the contrarian and posting stuff that I know is gonna cause a debate. That's what makes P2 so lively -- lotsa interesting characters with contrary points of view. Even folks that have rubbed me the wrong way on the list have turned out to be generally nice people in person. Hopefully some might even say the same about me. [g]"

(note: "[g]" stands for "grin")

"The best part of P2: Music, Music, Music. Talking about it, playing it, finding out about new music," says Jeff Wall of Kernersville, North Carolina, an electronics technician in the communications industry, publisher of his own twang-related web site, and one of the most outspoken people on P2. "It all comes back to the music. Plus, we are a self regulating anarchy. The thing that has kept P2 successful while other music forums have broken down is that respect is mandatory on P2. Sure, we mess with each other, sure we like to point out that your favorite band sucks, sure we like to make fun of you when you pass out face first into the chips and salsa, but there is always respect there as well."

 
Twangfest: a music event organized via cyberspace

In 1997, various members of P2 organized a two-night music event in St. Louis, called "Twangfest." The event was organized by P2 volunteers all over the U.S., largely via e-mail, and showcased both up-and-coming and established Americana bands. The event proved so successful that a second Twangfest was held in 1998. The volunteer group that organized the event then started paper work to form an incorporated nonprofit organization. The third annual Twangfest in 1999 proved the largest and most successful so far, spanning three days and nights, packing in an audiences of more than 300 people a night. In addition to its annual showcase in St. Louis, Twangfest also sponsors a yearly CD release, Edges from the Postcard, a compilation various Americana bands, including some bands with representatives on P2.

"The first time I went to Twangfest, I had maybe met three or four of the attendees face-to-face previously," says Wyatt. His band was asked to play that first event. "I set up the whole gig entirely by e-mail, not even using the phone. Frankly, I wondered what the hell I had done and couldn't even be sure the whole thing wasn't some big sham. Well, when I got to St. Louis, I met person after person I had corresponded with -- there was almost none of that 'getting to know you' flavor that accompanies meeting people for the first time. I *already* knew lots about them. I've never experienced anything like it."

"I did have second thoughts driving through southern Illinois to spend a weekend with 50 people I'd never met," says Knaus. "But I figured if it sucked I could drive right back home. And the Waco Brothers were playing, so how bad could that be? How? I arrived at the hotel, unpacked, called a P2 member that was there -- and who I had never met in-person --, walked into his room full of folks I had never seen face-to-face before, and joined the party."

"I joked beforehand about going to Twangfest for the first time and expecting to see a bunch of people squinting from never being out and having to converse from table to table by laptop," says Wendland. "But, of course, it turned out to be nothing like that. Pretty much a crowd of fun-loving party maniacs for the most part."

"It was completely natural to go there -- but I think a lot of people were WONDERING how it would actually go before their, uh, first time," says Mazor. "Were there going to be a bunch of people standing around having these elevated arguments about the psycho-social significance of class distinctions in 'Hee-Haw'?"

Mazor attended one of the first large-scale in-person P2 meetings, at the South By Southwest (SXSW) music conference in March 1997. "There was a workshop in the convention hall on the Future of Americana radio format, or something like that, moderated, if that word can be applied, by P2 member Jim Caligiuri. People wore badges (at the conference), and I tried reading people's chests furiously, to see who, if any, P2 people were around. When a current in joke from the list was mentioned out loud during the panel, at least 50 people let loose with a knowing laugh. The next day was the second of the P2 Austin barbecues (sponsored by a list member). We discovered we could hit it off like old friends. The first of the organized Twangfest musical events sponsored by the list was just weeks later. That tied it up; these virtual friends were the neighborhood I never got to have."

"The last night of last year's Twangfest was my coming out party, after actually attending the first two Twangfests and managing the trick of lurking them while actually attending!" says Silvers in a quote from a page of testimonials on the Twangfest Web site. "After I slipped out of my shell, I started writing to the list, (lord help y'all there) and found out for myself that there really wasn't any reason to be 'intimidated' by the folks who I'd spent so much time reading and enjoying around here... It's a great, truly special community of folks, and I'm lucky to be a little part of it. Can't wait till next year..."

Lisa Merlin of Boston, Massachusetts attended her first Twangfest in 1999, and on the same page of testimonials on the Twangfest Web site, said she was "initially apprehensive."

"Being somewhat shy -- and a bit intimidated -- I wasn't sure what sort of reception that I would get. Would I be ignored? Would I feel out of place? What sort of people would I meet? I had a wonderful time. I have never felt so comfortable in front of a group of people that I had never met before. I felt a real sense of belonging. People were welcoming, friendly, bright, funny and a hell of a lot of fun. The music was fantastic.... It was also great to meet so many WOMEN interested in the same music I am!"

"Twangfest has been a source of real pride for me, in addition to giving me the opportunity to learn a huge amount and work with some wonderful people, and providing the best long weekend of the year every year now for four years running," says Haugesag, a Twangfest organizer. "The hardest thing about working with Twangfest has been juggling the different agendas and constituencies (of volunteers and P2 members). Trying to keep the fest true to its P2 roots, yet still making it grow enough to stay interesting -- and stay afloat -- has been tricky, and so has trying to make Twangfest all the different things that the seven different organizers want it to be."

"I'm very, very proud of the event," echoes Arsenault regarding Twangfest. "I've learned from Twangfest both professionally and personally. My accomplishments with Twangfest gave me the confidence to start a new professional career. If I can help put something like Twangfest together on a shoe string budget, well, I feel like can do just about anything. I could not have gained this experience anywhere else. Personally, Twangfest has brought so much joy into my life; some of the Twangfest committee members are now my best friends. I also love attending Twangfest. I get to see four nights of the best music this genre has too offer. And I get to spend four days with wonderful folks. My involvement with Twangfest reminds me that when you're doing something you love and believe in, it's not really work. It's really hard and stressful, but it's not work. I've carried that over to my professional life as well." So far, the Twangfest volunteers seem to be striking the perfect balance, given the notices the event has received, such as one from Jon Weisberger, a bluegrass veteran musician and writer for Bluegrass Unlimited (and, of course, a P2 member): "Twangfest is not only a great showcase for the whole range of 'alternative country' - everything from bluegrass to rootsy rock'n'roll - it's the creation of a modern-day community, the cyber-neighborhood of Postcard2, giving it an up-close-and-personal flavor unmatched by other music festivals. Most importantly, it's a hell of a good time. When the history of alternative country is written, I'm confident it will be cited as a turning point, when the alt.country cyber-community materialized to give the genre a significant boost, not to mention one hell of a good time."

 
Thoughts on cyber stereotypes

P2 members had strong feelings about a few recent, highly-publicized reports claiming the Internet is isolating people and discouraging in-person interactions. Many P2 members are part of other online communities, and while not all of these communities generate face-to-face activity, no one said these groups were taking away from their "real" life.

"ALL communities are good supportive things, whether they happen face-to-face or over e-mail," affirms Knaus. "People make people more isolated. Saying the internet makes people more isolated is like saying pencils make people more isolated. Also, if you're the only person in Springfield who makes civil war figures out of marzipan - you can probably find more people with the same hobby easier on the Internet than by wandering the streets. This is good. You've created a community.

"People who tend to isolate are going to isolate," says Wall. "One good thing about the internet is its ability to shorten the lines of communication. My wife, who is an introvert, has made several good friends through the Internet, some from as far away as Australia. She drove 300 miles to attend a gathering of her Internet buddies. This is amazing, especially considering that she has a social anxiety hang-up."

"My feeling is that the internet may make some people more isolated if they were that way to begin with, but used appropriately, it can open the door to a wider social circle," says Kelly. "The fact that we can communicate online before we meet in person and we share a common interest in certain types of music expedites the initial steps of forming a relationship."

"I can say that it's been easier to make friends via this route -- meeting them before visual noise gets in the way--than to meet strangers in the less virtual Big City by so-called normal methods," says Mazor. "I know dozens of people from P2 -- virtually and often face-to-face -- better than most of the people in this 15 apartment brownstone I've lived in for 21 years! There has never been anything isolating about belonging to this community to me at all...just the opposite. Heck, the lady I spend all that time with today was a lurker on the list for some time, delurked about a year ago before a show, showed up amongst a group of us, and over time we got to know each other better. Given my work schedule, which involved a daily long commute out of the city and much travel besides, and hers--which is academic and she lives about an hour subway's ride away anyhow--there's not the slightest reason to think I'd have met her otherwise."

 
Could the success of this online community and
its in-person events be duplicated by others?

P2ers offered a number of suggestions to help other groups plan and nurture a successful online community, and to undertake a successful event that brings an online community together in-person. Knaus says that, for success, an organizer of an online community needs to remember to:

  • Mediate the community to keep things on track.
  • Plan and think through what you do.
  • Use [g] thingy's where appropriate ([g]'s denote virtual "grins").
  • Work as a team, which is easier than doing it by yourself.

"Be flexible," adds Wyatt. "An online community that just talks about one band or narrow genre seems like prison to me.

"You have to be prepared for the changing dynamic of a group, and accept repeating threads and some annoying people who like to cause trouble (baiting)," says Mazur, who is subscribed to numerous other music-related online communities. "I find some level of moderating helps keep a list focused, but having the freedom to share something about yourself is good, too. It keeps the list more human and people feel more connected when there's some off-topic straying."

"You've got to give community members enough space to be themselves--or at least, the version of themselves that shows in typing stuff," agrees Mazor. "But it seems to me that you've also got to keep the subject that brought the community together as your centerpiece, or a thousand points of individual distraction will blow the thing up. That keeps the Net list space itself an active home for that community -- instead of just turning into just a phone-like or bulletin board-like communication link for live community activities elsewhere. We've been lucky -- and maybe well-led and moderately moderated too -- in threading that needle."

"P2 is often accused of having an inner circle, or a clique," says Wall. "It's true, it does exist. However, it doesn't exist intentionally. Read a weeks worth of posts. About a tenth of the list generates the majority of list traffic. That's the inner circle. If you want to be a member of the inner circle, all you have to do is start contributing. It is a good idea to 'lurk' for a while to try to get a flavor as to what's going on."

As for events, Haugesag suggests organizers "keep in mind that you can't please all the people all of the time, and expect lots of grief and little glory. Have a clear sense of what you hope to accomplish, and try to find dates, times, and places that will accommodate as many people as possible. If people are traveling a long way, try to make sure that there's enough for them to do, enough places for them to stay, etc., without actually arranging their trip for them. And don't be surprised if some of the people don't turn out in person to be quite the way they seemed to be online. (That hasn't been the case with Twangfest, but I've heard stories of other gatherings...). Be prepared for lots of work and effort without much obvious return, at least not right away. Make sure you know why you're doing it and what you expect to get out of it, and don't do it unless you really believe in whatever you're doing -- otherwise, it won't be worth it."

"Honest and open communication is key," says Arsenault regarding organizing an event like Twangfest. "You have to really trust and respect the people you're working with. It's important that everyone is responsible and accountable. Face-to-face meetings at least every two to three months are really necessary." --

"We have touched the lives of thousands of mothers, babies and their families -- online."

So proudly states Annie Douglas, who coordinates the online volunteer program for Sidelines National Support Network, a pregnancy-support group with more than 5,000 volunteers, of which about 250 provide online service.

Sidelines volunteers provide emotional support to pregnant women coping with long term hospitalization or home bedrest, pregnancy complications, leaving a job or "normal" life due to pregnancy complications, etc.

The online version of Sidelines volunteer program began in 1997 with just 20 trained volunteers. "Since then we have grown exponentially, and currently have over 250 trained online volunteers who are managed by six online coordinators and help more than 150 families a month from all over the world to cope with a high-risk pregnancy" says Douglas.

Sidelines is so named because "women with pregnancy complications can feel stuck on the sidelines of life," says Douglas. Online communications have provided many of these women with much needed support.

Sidelines volunteers come from many walks of life, races, religions and backgrounds. Douglas says, "The one common trait that brings them together is the desire to give hope and encouragement to other high-risk moms."

"Sidelines receives about 25 requests a month from moms to become online volunteers for us." All of Sidelines volunteers have experienced high-risk pregnancies themselves, and some would not be able to provide support to others were it not the Internet. "Some of these women live in remote areas of the US, and other parts of the world, and would have never heard of Sidelines had they not surfed into our website. They want to give back, they want to help others that were in the same situation. E-mail volunteers help bring Sidelines and its support into their communities."

"I don't think people go out less because of the Internet. A large percent our e-mail volunteers also volunteer locally (face-to-face), in their own town, for Sidelines."

Testimonials from those served by Sidelines online volunteers testify to the power and importance of e-mail support:

    "I am 34 weeks pregnant and have been on bedrest for three weeks now. With my first child, I was on bedrest for seven weeks and was very depressed and had never heard of your organization. This time around it seems to be even more difficult having a two year old at home and feeling like I am neglecting him, but, I have a wonderful support person who is a Sidelines volunteer - Kris Z. She really has helped me to see the positive in this and that I can do this and she has given me many articles of other women on bedrest which helps me to realize that I am not alone and I feel lucky that I'm not in the hospital and that I am as far along in my pregnancy as I am. It has really helped me keep things into perspective. I just wanted to say thank you, you have a wonderful support group and are doing wonderful work!"

Another person helped by a Sidelines online volunteer told the organization:

    "Thank you so much for your encouragement, support and friendship via e-mail during my difficult pregnancy with my fifth child. Emily was born on Aug 20 weighing just over 5 lbs at 36 weeks gestation. Her good health is due in part to the constant "good vibes" sent my way from my e-mail buddy (volunteer) Patricia, who kept me sane through weeks of hospitalizations, bedrest, mag sulfate torture, steroid injections, blown veins from IVs, and home uterine monitoring, all due to complications from preterm labor. Thank you and God Bless!"

Sidelines is yet another perfect illustration of how cyberspace brings people together, and how the Internet is not only NOT closing us off to each other, but giving people human connections and support they might not receive otherwise.

 
The Virtual Volunteering Project features additional information about Sidelines, detailing how the program was started, how volunteers are recruited and matched, and how Annie Douglas has managed the online volunteering program.

For complete information about Sidelines, visit:
http://www.sidelines.org

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"Far from isolating Austinites, the Internet has made it possible for more of us to share our stories, to mourn our friends and loved ones who were victims, and to celebrate the survivors."
Rachel R. Hartman, SafePlace volunteer

 
This is more than a story of how the Internet helps people make a difference; it also is a powerful testimonial to how to effectively donate professional services, and how well a balance of face-to-face and online volunteering can work.

This information was posted April 3, 2000

 
by Rachel R. Hartman

 
A lot of companies nowadays try to find a charity they can work with on a long-term basis. For us at Hartman WebWrights, the choice was simple: SafePlace, Austin's domestic violence and sexual assault prevention center. Our experience has resulted in a clear and constant demonstration of how the Internet has expanded the possibilities of volunteering.

Back when SafePlace was two separate agencies (the Center for Battered Women and the Austin Rape Crisis Center), Annie Born, the daughter of friends was murdered over Independence Day weekend. Annie is believed to have been killed by an ex-boyfriend. Per her family's request, my husband and I, as private individuals, had sent a check to the Center for Battered Women as a memorial for Annie. But a financial donation from two people only goes so far, and as long-time netizens we knew first-hand the power of the Internet to connect individuals and bring them together in common cause. It was far too late to save Annie, but there are hundreds and thousands of "Annies" every year. We decided to write Kelly Roundtree, the Executive Director, and offer our services as webmasters.

A short time later, we got a call from Ellen Fisher, then Deputy Director for Community & Public Affairs. After assuring Ellen that the offer was indeed serious, we rattled our network of geek friends and managed to arrange for free web hosting and the assistance of a graphic artist and some HTML slingers. It didn't take long at all to assemble our team. Some knew about violence first-hand, while others had known the helplessness of seeing loved ones in abusive situations. Maybe it's just our particular circle of friends, but there are a lot of romantics out on the Net--and not merely in the amorous sense. Romantics who still believe that Good should triumph over Evil. That a call to arms must be answered. That we're all in it together. That we must help each other if we are not to be extinguished.

We met with Ellen and Robin Reger, then Public Affairs Manager, at the SafePlace office downtown. From the beginning, we essentially treated SafePlace as we would a paying client: Who do you picture as your typical visitor? What kind of information do you want on the Web? What kind of information do you want up first? We agreed on a sketch of the site's layout and an outline of content, then set to work. Since that first meeting, most of our work has been done online, with the "rough drafts" of the site posted in a private corner of the Web, and suggestions flying back and forth via e-mail. E-mail was our chosen method of meeting, as it allowed us to document discussions and decisions. For our team members, this was the best way for them to contribute, as they were physically located in New York, California, Illinois, northern Texas, and Canada. For Robin and Ellen, e-mail allowed them to make their contributions at their convenience, without major disruptions to their already busy schedules. This approach has continued with Autumn Williams, the current Public Affairs Manager.

Most of the early work was simply translating some of SafePlace's brochures and handouts into something suitable for the Web. Because the SafePlace site's typical visitor is a victim trying to find help before being discovered by his/her batterer, we opted for a plain and simple approach. Therefore, the site is relatively unsophisticated by industry standards, but most pages load in a few seconds, and the hotline numbers are at the bottom of every page. (At this writing, we are also preparing to give the site a thorough review so that surfers using assistive equipment have easy access as well.) The bulk of the content consists of information about SafePlace's wide range of programs, and information about special events, particularly fund-raising events. For their annual Walk for Safe Streets and Safe Families, we designed a CGI mail form that people could use to register as individuals or as a team. Route information, the schedule of events, and a partial list of donors were included. Corporate teams linked to the Walk section from their intranet pages to help spread the information to their coworkers. The online registration was so successful in 1999 that we plan to continue the practice this year and in the years to follow.

A teen center has recently been added, giving information about dealing with date rape and relationship violence, including a bilingual (Spanish and English) questionnaire designed to help teens think about the way they are treated by their significant others. Since teens make up such a large segment of the online population, a cyberstalking FAQ is also available. This was developed with the assistance of a North Carolina attorney, a leader of Women Halting Online Abuse (WHOA), the women of HerDomain (an Austin-area group of women interested in technology), and the patrons of #callahans (a long-standing and popular Undernet IRC channel). Comments and suggestions for the cyberstalking FAQ were collected through e-mail. This FAQ's usefulness has been recognized by at least one other web site: the Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc., whose members are occasionally subjected to celebrity stalking as well as the more mundane varieties of cyberstalking.

SafePlace has also taken advantage of Amazon.com's Affiliate program to open an online bookstore. While the money they receive every quarter has been welcomed, the Bookstore is also meant to inform visitors about reading choices, particularly in the Non-fiction section. Books in the Fiction and Children's sections are chosen because they either address issues surrounding abuse (such as Margaret Maron's Southern Discomfort or Lois McMaster Bujold's Komarr), or they offer entertaining stories that do not glorify violence (such as the Narnia Chronicles or the Berenstein Bears books).

Since April 1999, the site has been visited by well over 10,000 people, from Texas, from all over the United States, and in other countries. Many visitors have used the web site to learn more about becoming volunteers, about donating money and goods, and about participating in SafePlace's programs. Other donors, both on the corporate and private levels, provide links to the SafePlace site as a means of talking about their donations and volunteerism.

Donating our time to SafePlace has been amazing in so many ways. It is of course very gratifying in the usual ways associated with charity, but it's been very rewarding as a designer as well. For once, I don't have to worry about what the client can afford to have done. It's encouraged me to expand my geek network and find more people interested in working on the site. I've been challenged creatively in ways that seldom happen with a paying client. There's a very strong feeling of partnership when I brainstorm with my SafePlace contacts. If all that weren't enough, how often do you get to design a web site with a client that would be happy to go out of business due to a lack of need for their services?

Recent studies have claimed that the Internet has an inherently and intrinsically isolating effect on us, but our experience with SafePlace contradicts those results. The convenience of information on the Web has enabled more people to learn about SafePlace without adding more to the already heavy workload of the SafePlace staff. Recognizing this, SafePlace has begun to use the web site more aggressively when it comes to community relations. As Ellen Fisher once told me, "I used to have to fax our handouts to the media, but now I just tell them to go to the web site." Schools and other local groups link to the web site to inform their students and members about domestic violence and sexual assault. Far from isolating Austinites, the Internet has made it possible for more of us to share our stories, to mourn our friends and loved ones who were victims, and to celebrate the survivors. Don't tell me the Internet is keeping us apart, because I know, and SafePlace knows, that it is bringing us closer together.

Rachel R. Hartman is a professional writer and frequent speaker on using the Internet effectively. She is currently working on a four-article series about Web issues for the AARC newsletter Plane Talk.

--

This information is taken from the organizations' Web site. This is by no means a comprehensive list, but it is a good sampling of the various Web sites out there. Also, not all of these groups are still active, but the Web sites provide a good record of past activities:

     

  • Susan's La Femme Nikita Message Board
    http://www.InsideTheWeb.com/messageboard/mbs.cgi?acct=mb66652
    Members of this online community raised $12,000 Canadian to benefit the Mira Foundation, which provides helper dogs to people with disabilities; the money represents one dog fully trained and ready to be assigned.

     

  • Fans of Nicholas Lea - Focused on Making a Difference
    http://www.nickleague.org/
    During an interview in July 1998, actor Nicholas Lea of the "X-Files" said of his fans, "I just think sometimes that the focus is a little misplaced... I would love to see everybody here take a third of that energy and put it into their family or their community, or the people on the street who need our help." His fans did just that, creating "The Nick League" to organize fund raisers, on and offline, to support various charities. They are planning their first online auction for Summer 1999, and through e-mail requests to fans, have already raised more than $1500 for charity.

     

  • STARFLEET International
    http://www.sfi.org
    Founded by Star Trek enthusiasts in 1974, chapters (Starships) of this group "offer opportunities to have fun while you serve your community. We recognize crew members who have done extra service or distinguished themselves in service to STARFLEET. In keeping with the problem-solving themes of Star Trek, our members do more than meet and talk about the show. The crews of the Fleet are active in support of charity. We believe that time is our most valuable gift, so we donate time to help persons and charitable organizations. We conduct fundraisers and volunteer our services to help our community." Charities which STARFLEET takes part in include the Overseas Coupon Project, Stampede, and the Hershey's Chocolate Project.

     

  • PEACE - Adrian Paul Fan Club
    http://members.aol.com/peaceapfc/
    Dedicated to the PEACE (Protect Educate Aid Children Everywhere) Fund, joining corporate America and Hollywood to generate aid for children in need whether it be financial or educational. Founded in the Fall of 1998 by Adrian Paul, under the auspices of Athletes & Entertainers for Kids.

     

  • Meat Loaf UK Fan Club
    http://www.mlukfc.com
    Holds fundraisers for the Cleft Lip & Palate Association, and use the Internet to coordinate and promote their philanthropic efforts. MLUKFC will be hold an online charity auction soon, with all proceeds again to CLAPA.

     

  • Christian Bale Fan Club
    http://www.christianbale.org/cbfc.htm
    Proceeds from the fan club are directed towards Christian's charities which include: Greenpeace, The Redwing Sanctuary, the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, and the Happy Child Mission, a school for street children in Brazil.

     

  • Mac Attack Pack!!! Cardinals Care
    http://www.macattackpack.com/
    This not-for-profit organization, formed in 1997, says it is "already one of the most successful fan clubs in the Major Leagues", with members in more than 40 states. "Cardinals Care" is an "expression of the St. Louis Cardinals' commitment to its Community. The focus of Cardinals Care is on "Team Play" and on "Giving Something Back" to the community that has supported the Cardinals through the years.

     

  • Circle of Friends / Casey Biggs Fanclub/ AIDS
    http://www.muohio.edu/~thomasrd/fomoh.html
    This non-profit charity organization supports the philanthropic interests and professional activities of actor Michael O'Hare. Charities supported include House of Ruth, a shelter for battered men, women, and children; Hale House, a facility caring for children with AIDS; Gay Men's Health Crisis Center, a center providing assistance to all AIDS victims; Foundation for Community Encouragement; the Sierra Club; Muscular Dystrophy Association; and the Motion Picture and Television Fund Foundation, a support agency for anyone in the industry in financial need

     

 
--

There are thousands of online communities for people who want to to share information and excitement about a particular television show, movie, sports team, celebrity, hobby or literary genre. And just as offline communities and groups will often "pass the hat" at their gatherings for a good cause, these Internet-based fan groups often come together online or in person to improve their communities, promote a cause or generate funds for a nonprofit organization. Often, these fans engage in philanthropy with no prompting from any charity or formal organization.

The following are examples of such groups, with comments from members about their online philanthropic activities and what makes them successful: