The Book or Byte?
I just submitted my article to The Jewish Daily Forward on how Jewish nonprofits are faring with Web 2.0 technology. The short answer: they’ve got some catching up to do.
An interesting idea came up during my research. I was asking Rabbi Hayim Herring from STAR (Synagogues: Transformation and Renewal) if he had thoughts about why Jewish philanthropies are slow to jump on the Web 2.0 bandwagon, especially when some Christian organizations are maybe better thought of as Church 2.0.
He said, “Historically, we are a people of the book. We are not a people of the byte.”
Do you think Jewish organizations are slow to pick up on technology because they’ve got their noses in books? What’s your take?
You can read my entire article in the Forward’s special issue on Giving on June 20.
Tags: church 2.0, forward, jewish, nonprofit, philanthropy, STAR, web 2.0
UA-2525455-5
June 10th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
Interesting topic. Jewish organizations, as a whole, are painfully behind the technology curve. Very few institutions are talking to people like you or other technology consulting firms to help improve both their external image as well as a communication (both in terms of websites and email marketing).
I have a couple of takes on this. First, I think there is some validity to Rabbi Herring’s statement, but I also think it has to do with our natural (or forced) isolation mentality - “why make a notice of ourselves?” is not too far removed for our communities. Why Christians are better is the flip side of us. Christians are rooted and more comfortable in espousing and evangelizing the “good book”. Using the web is a natural extension. I am sure we could analyze and re-analyze this point - but I will leave it there.
Another reasoning is the generational gap in leadership. More often than not, Jewish organizations are led by the “gray hairs” who even with the best intentions, are not able to grapple with the new and rapidly-changing technology landscape. I have been lucky at my synagogue where I re-designed the website and implemented an email marketing program, to have lay and clergy leadership who understand the impact of the internet. i know others who are frustrated with their shul’s web presence.