One of the best descriptions of someone you wouldn’t want to be stranded on a desert island with is simple: Six feet tall, one-quarter inch deep. 

Not a lot of potential for meaningful conversation while waiting to be rescued.

Today, that description can be applied to plenty of so-called “experts”. 

They don’t really have any depth of knowledge, they just skimmed something, then regurgitated talking points. 

Thankfully, I’m not the only person who’s seeing this kind of “expertise” proudly displayed anywhere from the halls of Congress to the local coffee shop where “experts” hold forth on just about every topic imaginable. 

Apparently, I’ve been trendspotting-  seems the age of “shallow knowledge” is here.

According to Culture Vulture, we live in the age of “shallow knowledge”. We don’t read. We skim. Read the headline, maybe two paragraphs- and move on. 

Since we’ve specialized in giving you what we internally call “blurbs” of the 40-60 items we have every morning in each edition of our wires for nearly 16 years, we’ve likely contributed. 

But the intent was never to encapsulate a story, just give you enough information to see if you wanted to pursue it further. 

Now, what I once derisively called the “Cliff Note Culture” comprises this generation’s deep thinkers.

Culture Vulture says that fifty-nine percent of the links shared on social media have never been clicked. Today, people share stories without ever having read them (and yes, I‘m LMAO at everyone who’s always telling me social media is the “answer” - but can’t tell me a question it’s answering -other than what made Zuckerberg rich).

Further, CV says we “pick” relevant pieces of info, then regurgitate them via Facebook, Twitter or however you share “information.” 

The New York Times says “it’s never been so easy to pretend to know so much without really knowing anything.” Heaven knows, the NYT needs to pick some relevant pieces of information about guns, gun ownership and such up before holding-forth, but for once, I think they’re absolutely correct.

Need more proof? The NBA is experimenting with a new streaming option that lets viewers watch the final quarter of a game for only 99 cents. That’s radical for an organization that normally forces you to subscribe to a full season of a team’s games. According to streaming experts, these “micro-transactions” have the potential to turn into a “significant revenue stream”. 

Don’t bother with the whole game, just watch the important parts at the end...wait a minute, that sounds like the premise of “Sports Center” doesn’t it?

There really is a point that’s relevant to the wires, our Corporate Members and readers: in today’s world, everyone’s smothered with information.  

If you’re trying to communicate something you think is important to readers, viewers or listeners, say it up front. As we were taught in journalism school- don’t bury the lede - give the important information first.  

It sounds simple, but you’d be surprised how many companies are incapable of telling   you “ABC is now shipping their new thingamajig”.

Instead, they have to first tell you “ABC Corporation, a Delaware Corporation first formed by Bob, Ted, Carole and Alice Katzenjammer of Toledo, Ohio which has now grown into a gigabillion-dollar enterprise after having been bootstrapped into existence from only $1.99 in capital...is now shipping....”

In legal-ese that’s called “boilerplate”. It’s purpose is simple: to confuse non-lawyers. 

Lawyers skip right over it and go directly to the meat of every document.

When you’re trying to make a point- especially something with the potential to positively influence your business (like a new product, key hire or strategic alliance), you’d better skip the prose and get directly to the meat. 

Otherwise, you’ll miss something important - your customers.

--Jim Shepherd