1. Here Comes Everybody: The Power of
Organizing Without Organizations
(Clay Shirky, 2008)
&
Cognitive Surplus, Creativity and Generosity in a
Connected Age
(Clay Shirky, 2010)
Kristen Stanley & Samantha DeLenardo
CMN5150-Knowledge Management
Dr. Pierre Levy
Department of Communication
The University of Ottawa

2. About the Author
• Studies the effects of the
internet on society.
• Associate Arts Professor at
the Interactive
Telecommunications
Program (ITP) at NYU.
Has written of the topic in:
Here Comes Everybody: The Power of
Organizing Without Organizations (2008)
and
Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and
Generosity in a Connected Age (2010)

3. Here Comes Everybody: The Power of
Organizing Without Organizations
• Society is changing rapidly, and social
media is integral to how it is shifting.

4. Cost and the Coasean Theory (1937)
• Developed from 1937s paper “ The Nature of the Firm”
by Ronald Coase
• The internet is dropping “transaction costs”
▫ The Coasean Ceiling:
 Above transaction costs;
▫ The Coasean Floor:
 Below transaction costs

5. The Model of Promise, Tools, & Bargain
• Groups are forming where and when they have
never been able to in the past:
▫ Promise:
 Why someone should join a group;
▫ Tools:
 Overcoming the challenges of forming a
group;
▫ Bargain:
 What to expect from a group;

6. Main Issues Revisited
• The World Wide Web will:
▫ Change daily life
▫ Change Collective Action;
▫ Challenge our social institutions;

7. Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and
Generosity in a Connected Age
“Our cognitive surplus is only potential; it doesn’t mean
anything or do anything by itself” – Clay Shirky

8. Means, Motive & Opportunity
How? Why? What?
Intrinsic vs.
Aggregation Creating
extrinsic
of free time environments
motivation
Social media Social Surprises and
as an enabler motivation human nature

9. The Economics of Sharing
• Size of the community
• Cost of sharing that knowledge
• Clarity of what gets shared
• Cultural norms of the recipients

10. Four Uses of Social Media
Personal Communal
Public Civic

11. Connection: The Case of the Stolen Sidekick
• Evan Guttman’s
quest to find a
friend’s lost cellphone
resulted in the arrest
of a 16 year old girl.

12. Conclusion
• Transformative uses;
• Symmetrical participation;
• Focus on building public and civic groups.

13. List of Websites
1. http://www.shirky.com/
2. http://www.shirky.com/weblog/
3. http://shirky.com/writings/
4. http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/feb/15/t
his-much-i-know-clay-shirky-technology
5. http://www.evanwashere.com/StolenSidekick/
6. www.ushahidi.com
7. http://icanhascheezburger.com/
8. www.meetup.com
9. http://theseoultimes.com/ST/?url=/ST/db/read.php?i
dx=6585
10. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_
25/b3938900.htm