Preparation
Preparation for the forum began with extensive online research, in order to determine which topics and questions could be interesting for the discussion. A selection of the websites found have been listed under Link directories. Numerous media experts, editors of cultural websites and webzines, directors and members of cultural institutions and organizations, artists, critics, curators, journalists, etc. around the world were contacted directly by the project director and invited to participate (over 1200 email invitations were sent). Thanks to the PR work done by the House of World Cultures, a lot of attention was dedicated to the event even before its beginning, especially by the Berlin-based media.
A slow start
At the beginning of the forum, 10 introductory Statements and a posting with Questions were sent to the members of the mailing list. Naturally, the abundance of this material first had to be read. Nonetheless, the relatively low number of discussion contributions which came in during the first four weeks was troubling. On 11 November, Olu Oguibe wrote: »It is somewhat disappointing to me that this forum has yet to generate the level of active participation that ought to be rightly expected of an opportunity like this. Going through the recently published list of subscribers, it strikes one that with so many individuals and groups already actively engaged in programs of cultural exchange through the internet, there ought to be more discussion, more sharing of stories, experiences, and lessons...«
The beginning reservation should, however, not be attributed to a lack of interest. How intense the interest actually was could be seen in the speedy growth of the mailing list, the visits to the website, the numerous email-retrievals of texts, and the positive feedback in mails received daily by the project director.
The debate gathers momentum
In the course of communication about the slow start (see themes discussed - Participation in Net forums) and faced with the end of the forum originally planned for the beginning of December, the debate finally hit its stride. In the last weeks of this first phase, it was often the case that up to 6 contributions came in during a single day. Notable is the increasingly personal tone of the mails. The forum has become, at least for some participants, a switching station for an information exchange which has continued outside the debate itself.
In the end, one quarter of the mailing list members involved themselves actively in the forum. The high quality of the contributions as well as the wealth of the published contents was repeatedly praised.
Prolongation of the forum
Due to the great interest and the explicit wish of many participants, the direction of the House of World Cultures decided to continue the forum, at first until the end of December, and then after an organizational pause, through 1999.
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Participation in Net forums  |
Project direction: Gerhard Haupt - haupt@uinic.de
© House of World Cultures, Berlin. 1998/1999