Sumana Harihareswara, 08/04/2013 14:36:
Nemo, I have sympathy for you here -- it took a while for me to get used to the use of "socialize" in the way the Wikimedia communities use it.
Not communities, the WMF.
I think socializing is more than just "communication" implies, though; "communication" sometimes implies a simple broadcast, where "socializing" implies:
- this is a process, not a one-time global message
- presenting the reasons for a change, not just saying it's going to happen
- thinking from the perspective of the people affected and asking them
relevant questions
- learning new facts and perspectives from the affected communities and
using them to modify plans
negotiation
So I am resigned to using "socialization" because I don't think there's
a better succinct phrase for this.
"Negotiation" would be good enough. "Discussion" if you don't have an initial opinion. However those mostly decided things, so "communication" is just fine; or look for whatever word governments use to broadcast the reasons for their decrees, I don't know them in English but there surely are many. At any rate, don't tell anyone you're "socialising" something or them, it's just ridiculous.
Nemo