Stephen Downes

I'm a bit surprised to read that Zoom-bombing is still a thing. "'Zoom-bombing' refers to any time uninvited guests join a virtual meeting to disrupt it, typically by sharing loud audio or offensive imagery, or both." That said, I have worked with professors who even as late as this year have preferred to keep their Zoom chat open to whomever wants to drop in. It's definitely not what I recommend, no more than I would recommend allowing just anyone to join the stage at a conference panel discussion. At the same time, I've seen the logic work in reverse, which professors arguing that the discussion shouldn't be advertised so they can keep it 'open' without fear of it being Zoom-bombed. Me, I don't really see a contradiction of values here - 'open' does not entail a responsibility to provide an 'open mic'.