That Which is Under Discussion

Over a hundred years ago, thousands of individuals around the world collaborated through a place called the Scriptorium to create the Oxford English Dictionary.

This job has nothing to do with that. Or does it? The spirit of collaboration and of building something important for the world, while perhaps a bit grand, is certainly something we hope will mark the experience of those who are selected for these positions.

Web Lab develops and promotes innovative ways to use the web as a transformative force in people's lives and in society, and catalyzes others to experiment with the medium's potential to serve the public interest. Two weeks ago, the New York Times called our alternative dialogue technique "One of the most innovative ideas for creating value and relevance in online conversation."

The dialogue monitor position is a way to get involved with this technique over the course of its next implementation on PBS OnLine, in conjunction with their Sept broadcast of "An American Love Story" a 10 part documentary about a bi-racial couple and their two daughters living in Queens. The site and the dialogues will focus on negotiating differences in relationships.

These will not be your typical dialogues. We have spent a year experimenting and refining this process, and still have much more to learn. Hardly anyone comes equipped with the training necessary for the task at hand, but if you are a quick learning, hard-working, detail oriented, articulate editor with some experience thinking about people in dialogue (and can work from home), this might be the job for you.

However, instead of trying to identify in more detail what skills will be best suited for this position, since our technique is so new, we'd rather not presume what would or wouldn't be best. So, instead, why don't you tell us what skills you think would be most important for this position, and why you have them.

About the Technique

This process, in short, is structured around grouping together 60 or so registrants and inviting them to join a group for a set period of time. They all start together and, hypothetically, end together. They self-moderate the group. We stay out of their discussion. The dialogue is theirs to take where they will (starting with the topic of the site). And it is up to them to make it work. So far, looking at the most recent example Reality Check, the experience has been tremendous for those who participate. And, on a personal note, it has changed the way we think about the Web and the possibilities for what role it can play in people's lives.

About the Job

As mentioned above, there are no facilitators or moderators. But while we stay out of the dialogues, we still stay on top of them. The job of the monitor (and there will be more than one) is to track a set number of groups and: