The new vocabulary of citizenship

Google is a company built on owning language. They sell search words to advertisers who want to occupy little slices of our vocabulary. ‘Google’ is even its own verb.

So, when a group of people who are so attuned to the importance and power of language start using a word in a new way, we should all prick up our ears.

In a recent interview, coinciding with the launch of the new ‘Google Ideas’ think-tank, Eric Schmidt, the company’s chairman, spoke a little about his sense that technology will radically reshape the way in which citizens will relate to governments.

He also commented on Google’s oft-stated mission to “do good”, and said that the aim of ‘Google Ideas’ is,  “to come up with new ideas to make the world a better place. The point is that, as a corporation, we’re trying to do more than just serve our shareholders. We’re also literally trying to serve our citizens, our customers.”

What’s fascinating about the quote is the use of the word “citizens” to describe customers. It’s not a new idea, and anyone who’s watching the rollout of the Google+ competitor to Facebook can immediately see what he’s talking about. But, it does herald a significant evolution in the nature of human belonging, that deserves notice.

As the Roman Empire collapsed, a continent of people who had known themselves as Civis Romanus was supplanted by tribal groups of Franks, Goths and Saxons. Similarly, at the end of the Medieval age, feudal loyalties were replaced by new national and denominational identities.

It is possible that we are entering a time when our first citizenship will increasingly be, not to our countries, but to providers like Google, Facebook, Twitter, or my new favourite niche social media competitor, Ravelry.