Share This! How You Will Change the World with Social Networking

Coming June 2010, Berrett-Koehler

Order now: Amazon, Powell’s, Barnes & Noble, Indiebound

The times are not just a-changin’, they’re a-revolutionizin’! As social media becomes increasingly present in our everyday lives, a major democratic cultural shift is underway. Through the power of relationships, sharing of experiences, and organizing online, previously marginalized voices are pouring into and shaping public conversations like never before.

But serious change will not happen on its own. Despite the increasing presence of a diversity of voices and faces, the Internet isn’t fulfilling its disruptive potential; more often than not, it’s simply replicating and amplifying inequality and segregation. The good news? The fundamental building block common to every social movement is the power of the narrative. Your story… and your willingness to share others’ stories with your networks… can mean the difference between progressive change and perpetuating the status quo. We need you here, building and mapping your relationships, sharing your experience and creating pipelines of empathy and trust that will change the world.

This book is a blueprint for understanding why and how this medium of exchange works, and how our personal stories and daily experiences comprise a profoundly political picture that leads to social action and social change. Through a fun and accessible exploration of the intersection of philosophy, psychology, sociology and technology, it looks at how an historical convergence of forces has constructed a platform of immense possibility. Finally, the book offers concrete strategies and advice for both individuals and organizations looking to engage in this digital extension of our humanity. It shows, quite simply, how YOU will change the world.

What people are saying about Share This!

“When Deanna Zandt writes that sharing is daring, she expresses the logic of the age, where a shift from hoarding to sharing can provide incredible social leverage. Think of ‘Share This’ as a manifesto for social engagement, and as a manual for positive change.”
–Clay Shirky, author of Here Comes Everybody and faculty member, Interactive Telecommunications Program at New York University

“If you are an activist or a concerned citizen and you are new to social media, start with Share This! Deanna Zandt has deep knowledge, broad experience, a knack for clear and simple explanation, a talent for storytelling, and a wonderfully engaging voice.”
–Howard Rheingold, author of Smart Mobs and lecturer, University of California Berkeley and Stanford University

“Deanna Zandt is right on target–social media is a new frontier for social justice. The world may indeed be a better place if we all tell our stories authentically and fearlessly and listen to one another with open hearts.”
–Cecile Richards, President, Planned Parenthood Federation of America

“This book is perfectly timed and brilliantly balanced between reality and inspiration. Social media won’t change the world on its own but with active, informed and conscious participation we can.”
–Baratunde Thurston, comedian, blogger, and Web Editor, The Onion

“Deanna Zandt has a techie’s brain and an organizer’s heart. With this book, she shows us definitively (and entertainingly too) how our personal stories can do more than fill out our consumer profile. Together, they say, we can change the world. Deanna shows us how we can come together in a whole new way, right now.”
– Laura Flanders, host of GRITtv and GRITradio and author of Blue Grit

“Greedheads and boneheads, arrogance and ignorance. Can everyday people buck the system? Yes! Zandt shows us how, and how to have fun doing it!”
– Jim Hightower, national radio commentator and author of Swim Against the Current

“Share This! is the book I wish I had written. Zandt writes with incredible knowledge, easy humor, and profoundly touching stories. If ever you needed that nudge to convince you that the web has fundamentally changed the game and that your participation is an important part of it, this is the book. I’m recommending it to everyone I know.”
–Tara Hunt, author of The Whuffie Factor

“Progressive media activist and ‘geek grrl’ Deanna Zandt has been surf- ing the social media wave practically from the start. Whether you’re looking to get your feet wet or want to dive in, Share This! shows not only how networked media is changing society but how we all can join in and make the most of it to help change the world.”
– Micah Sifry, cofounder, Personal Democracy Forum, and Editor, TechPresident.com

“You’ve never read a book like this before. Embrace the new. Go for it. It just might change your life.”
–Don Hazen, Executive Editor, AlterNet.org

“Anyone interested in social media for social good needs to read this book and absorb the techniques and stories for using the tools that Zandt shares.”
– Beth Kanter and Allison Fine, authors of The Networked Nonprofit

“Sick of hearing about how social media is changing everything? Deanna Zandt knows what you mean–and yet she’s found a way to transcend the cynicism and remind us that beneath the hype, some- thing amazing is happening as we build our digital lives around what still matters most: relationships.”
–Monika Bauerlein, Coeditor, Mother Jones

“Share This! is a book that everyone from tech novices to old hands will enjoy. Zandt hits just the right note with her accessible and witty prose–this book is bound to change the way you think about social networking.”
– Jessica Valenti, founder, Feministing.com, and author of The Purity Myth

“Deanna Zandt is completely tapped into the social media matrix. Every activist working in the digital space needs this book.”
–Latoya Peterson, Editor, Racialicious.com

“Deanna Zandt has a unique talent for bringing clarity to the too often jargon-y and confusing discussion of how new technology is changing society. Share This! is a must read for anyone wanting to understand how to navigate the new hyperconnected world of media and activism.”
–Andrew Golis, Editor of Blogging and Political Editor for Yahoo! News

“After my daughter explained Facebook to me, I joined. (And surprised many of my friends!)”
–Rachael Zandt, Administrative Assistant, Columbian Financial Group, and mother, Deanna Zandt

“Zandt’s book is like a celebrity cooking show…it breaks down the ingredients of social media successes into basic and easy-to-understand ingredients. You will finish reading this manual with the amazing feeling of ‘I can do this!’”
– Scott Goodstein, External Online Director, Obama for America, and founder, Revolution Messaging

“Deanna Zandt is one of the smartest, savviest, and sharpest observers of the new world, new media, and new ideas.”
–Robert Greenwald, President, Brave New Films

“With media, technology, and politics having essentially merged, all activists for justice need to update their attitudes and their skills. This book by social media maven Deanna Zandt has just the right mix of the why and the how to convince the skeptical and equip the fearful.”
– Rinku Sen, Executive Director, Applied Research Center, and coauthor of The Accidental American

“Deanna Zandt thinks big, arguing that social media won’t just change how we talk but how we live. Part analysis, part guidebook, Share This! offers a creative, ambitious view of a truly organic political landscape hinted at, but never really pursued, by the new political establishment.”
–Ben Smith, Senior Political Writer, POLITICO

“Share This! combines common sense, technically savvy how-to, and a grasp of the way in which human beings and technology come together and sometimes apart. Deanna Zandt is a first-rate guide for the 22nd century.”
– Amy Bloom, author of Where the God of Love Hangs Out and Away

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