Call me dissapointed or perhaps simply jaded but I am not so sure nonhierarchical news sites, despite their promises, are really what they are cracked up to be. I caught up with Joe Petvisashvili, creator of Jaanix.com, and an expert at tackling the problems.

In short, is there anyway to stop the system gaming that threatens to turn “citizen powered media” and free choice into marginalized popularity contests?

Wayne: Why did you start Jaanix?

Joe: I asked myself were there any alternatives to the problem you cited? Is there any way to have a community that can aggregate stories interesting to their users, and one that doesn’t encourage group think and trolling? Is it possible to create a destination that encourages different opinions even those not mainstream, and where the marginal opinions are not shut down and blocked out by trolls?

Wayne: Ok I have worked with Jaanix for awhile, after our conversations on Whuffie, so how is it different?

Joe: For starters there is no front page, there’s no karma, nor points to gain. In my vision users should value quality information and accurate news for the sake of quality and accuracy. This is something that is not only missing in nonhierarchical news sites, but in much of mainstream media. The Internet was supposed to liberate information!

Wayne: O.k. that is a lofty goal so how does it work then?

Joe: There is AI [artificical intelligence] behind the scenes that tries to learn what you find interesting, and tries to make a calculated guess to what’s important for you.

Wayne: I have eclectic tastes Joe. How would it know what’s important to me?

Joe: You’re not alone in the world Wayne, there are other people, and some of have similar interests- this is a matter of simple statistics. By comparing the patterns of likes, clicks and other activity with our technology it can find what is common between you and others and recommend accordingly.

Wayne: Why hasn’t Jaanix become as popular or mainstream as you like. Is it a matter of time, or are there other factors?

Joe: The plethora of other social news out there that have completely discredited the idea of social recommendations. There is no accountability and it is hard to stop group think.

Wayne: Can you give me an some examples or opinions?

Joe: Sure, reddit claims to be offer personalized recommendations while it is really employing simplistic vote counting. This is merely a popularity contest.

Wayne: How about the powerhouse- Digg. I have even managed to get a few stories, in my malware hunting days, on the front page.

Joe: It started out strong but now the front page is totally controlled by a tiny clique of power users while claiming to be a “democracy”. Perhaps the biggest loss is Hacker News – it was the last refuge for the reddit elite is now turning into “dictatorship” of sorts.

Wayne: O.K. Joe what can Jaanix offer users?

Joe: Jaanix is all about empowerment, stewardship and giving you back what you deserve. The more feedback you give - the more valuable information you receive. And there are so many ways you can give feedback: clicking only on things you like is already enough for the recommendation technology to know you, but you can also adjust your preferences dynamically with fast and easy to use sliders. You can even post and save things that you care about into your personal sub-jaanix.

Wayne: Cool. I will be giving it more attention. Thanks for your time Joe and good luck on your mission.

Users who haven’t checked out Jaanix might want to give it a try as an alternative to the household names of recommendation sites. Information is power and money in a virtual world and you are far better off if you are getting the best information. Quality beats quantity anyday in my book. Surf to: http://www.jaanix.com

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