Research on Vaishnava discussion groups - JVS issue on Vaishnavism and modernity

JVS (Journal of Vaishnava Studies) has put out a call for papers on Vaishnavism and modernity on the RISA (Religions in South Asia) list. I seem to have lost the original message.

In response, one scholar suggested doing research into Vaishnava internet discussion groups and forums. Would that be interesting? Often research is done into things that are easily done. A research project where you never have to leave your computer is ideal, but how valuable?

I would be skeptical of such a project as research, rather than "journalism."

I expect that the result of "research" on this topic would depend almost entirely on the arbitrary definitions the "researcher" might set, and would tell us more about the researcher's bias than about the topic itself.

For example: how do you define a "Vaishnava discussion group"? Is it a group where all the participants are Vaishnavas? Or is it a group moderated by Vaishnavas, with both Vaishnava and non-Vaishnava participants? Or is it any group where a significant numbers of Vaishnavas participate?

Then, more vexingly, comes the question: how do you define "Vaishnava"? Is a "Vaishnava" anyone who self-identifies as such, even though the majority of the Vaishnava community would reject that person as a Vaishnava?

Would the research cover the Sri Vaishnavas and Madhavas, and would it cover those who communicate their modernist interests in languages other than English?

Almost invariably, a researcher would end up narrowing his focus, and this narrowing would color the "results" of the research. I don't think that a project researching "Vaishnava internet discussion groups" would be easily done, at all, if it were done properly.

Finally, why would you suggest that a project researching Vaishnava internet discussion groups would be one "where you never have to leave your computer"? I can easily envision that one aspect of research on this topic could involve how Internet discussions compare and contrast with -- perhaps add to, or detract from -- offline Vaishnava communications and relationships.

To me, this sounds like a project that would be easy to do poorly, but hard to do well.

I'd be curious to see the research topics... I'm wondering what useful reseach could be done on the topic.

How different strains of tradition relate to each other?
How Vaishnava's recruit/convert using the Internet?
How offensive vaishnavas can be to each other using the Internet?

I think there is a temptation (and I am sure that this is something that researchers are well aware of) to use the facility of the internet to rely on it exclusively. What to speak of a research project that is about the Internet.

There is an inherent skewing of knowledge that comes when we do our research through Google. The opinions represented by the site with the most hits are given official status.

With regards the kinds of nastiness that many forums went through. This does not seem to me to be indicative of "Vaishnavas" as a specifically nasty breed of human being, but something that many, many such sites went through. I can remember the Indology list way back in the days before Windows, when terrible arguments used to ensue, driving the moderator nuts.

A lot has to do with getting used to the medium itself and the moderators learning their art. Audarya Fellowship and Istagosthi show two very different moderating styles. The former stifling argument and intelligent discussion with a very heavyhanded approach, made worse by the impersonal anonymity of the moderators, the latter purportedly "hands-off" but ultimately very capricious.

In a past, I had many encounters with scholar friends from Iskcon who couldn't accept me being part of something other than Iskcon, nor themselves being in further relationship with me because of my views on Raganuga Bhakti, etc., I was asked by them for materials which I have or study. I did that with two of them (I passed materials on to them), but they later used them against me to preach to others in Iskcon about the wrongdoings of those who don't properly follow the path. They totally misused the materials I sent them over the internet or in written form, in a typical cult-inquisition way, and I was really saddened by that.

Reforms, cleaning hearts, big political promises and all those kind of researches always have some background I don't want to comment about. Possibly I am all Che Guevarish about this.

Researches , opinions and polls are relative. I.e, if the person taking part in the research has to answer certain questions , the answer to those questions will be relative to the frame of mind they are in that day, and daily circumstances which affect their consciousness. On my UNI during my psychology studies I did statistics, and I did not find any of those polls and researches objective. Furthermore, I think that in 21st century, where information changes every few minutes, and there are updates about almost everything we touch on an hourly basis, we will never be able to find out the objective answers or results.