As I mentioned in a previous post, I'll be participating on a panel at the next meeting of the Louisville chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. This panel is supposed to be discussing the "medium rather than the message" and "blogging and especially how it connects with journalism as we used to know it."
Of course, I'm full of opinions on this. Would you expect any less of me? ;o) However, as preparation for the discussion, I'm really very curious what you all (fellow bloggers and blog readers) think about these questions.
So, can we open a small discussion just among friends? -- What do you think about blogs as a communication medium? How does blogging (or the reading of blogs) compare/contrast/connect to journalism as we used to know it?
Of course, I'm full of opinions on this. Would you expect any less of me? ;o) However, as preparation for the discussion, I'm really very curious what you all (fellow bloggers and blog readers) think about these questions.
So, can we open a small discussion just among friends? -- What do you think about blogs as a communication medium? How does blogging (or the reading of blogs) compare/contrast/connect to journalism as we used to know it?
Comments
I think the blog as a medium is a more interactive medium than the traditional media (print, radio, and TV) because it invites discussion and builds a community of like-minded individuals. The medium can be networked into such communities. An example is clearly my connection with other Conservative blogs in the state. We build a connection among ourselves and often reference each other in our writings.
As far as how blogs connect/compare/contrast with journalism as we used to know it? I'm not sure. Obviously, I don't research and report NEW stories. I comment on and analyze what already published accounts are reporting. I do "journal" but I don't consider what I do to be journalism in the traditional sense of getting a "scoop" and chasing down the story.
Blogs, in my mind, are more like "letters to the editor" but they are ALL published rather than being at the mercy of the editor of a paper or the screener of calls to a radio show. My opinion is out there in cyberspace for anyone to see if he/she chooses to read it.
Transparency is a big difference between bloggers and journalists. Journalists, even though they filter their facts through their own biases, claim "objectivity" while bloggers put their biases right out there in front of their commentary. We make no bones about our allegiances and our ideologies. Journalists might tell you that they must claim objectivity to be taken seriously; however, most of us know immediately on reading a headline which angle the reporter has come at the story given his/her biases. We know Right-colored language from Left-colored language.
So, there are my two-cents. Just thinking via the keyboard... I'm intensely curious what you all think! People who read blogs must have some opinion on what they're reading on blogs versus what they read in their papers or see on TV; people who blog must have some opinion on what they're writing and why. Speak up, y'all!
Though I didn't know it at the time, a chief reason I began blogging was to chart my own political education. I quit the moment I came to regard myself as smarter than half the 'sphere and envious of the skills and knowledge of the other half. Jes figured that mindset was a recipe for a spectacular public meltdown!
As a medium, I think blogging will always be important, but now that the big, established blogs either have either discontinued comments, or let them become fever swamps of unmoderated insanity, the "community feel" one gets from blogs is relagated to the tier-2 and tier-3 blogs. Like Scott mentioned, these are usually local, not national blogs anymore.
The single greatest thing about blogging as a medium is that editorial bias is stated up front, often in the very name (StopTheACLU, FairTaxBlogBurst, BushIsABigFatPoopy-head, etc.) It's so refreshing not having to decipher subtle coded messages in the news of the day, always wondering what the reporter left out as "unimportant." If only the MSM would drop the false pretense of neutrality, they'd be free to openly explain why they consider this newsworthy while that's not. This slavish devotion to "balance" makes for awkardly-worded news pieces that don't inform much.
I agree that blogs do tend to become echo chambers. Maybe that's what I like about them though... it's a sense of community and knowing that even though Conservatives may disagree on some issues we all have the same basic goals. Differing viewpoints even within the ideology keep it very interesting.
The bigger national blogs do seem to have created their own tier of importance that the smaller blogs will never reach. And, if smaller blogs start trying to compete for readers, they're more likely to get burned out because most of us wee bloggers don't research/write full-time. If you let it, the metrics and the competition can really become an obsession.
I think transparency is a major difference too, Scott. Seems like any chucklehead can read a headline and know exactly which side of the fence the "objective" reporter is on anyway. Why not own up to it and target an audience instead of shotgunning topics and expecting people not to notice the bias? I hope that's a point that will be discussed at some point on this panel.
It's funny you should make that point about political education, Kadnine; I never realized how tuned in we political bloggers are compared to the average citizen. When you know as much about other races in other states as you do about those in your own state, while most folks barely know anything about the race in their own state, it's a bit eye-opening. Worse yet though is this -- Just yesterday, I called a cellular place in La Grange to find out where the store is located. After getting the street address, I asked, "Oh, are you in that same little strip mall as the GOP Headquarters office?" There was a moment of silence on the other end and the woman said, "GOP? What's that?" I had to use the word "Republican" for her to recognize it as a political party and not a three-letter acronym for a company. Sheesh.
...maybe it's time for me to throw in the towel too...