On Blogging

Why are blogs so captivating both to read and to write?

Flash back to 2002 by reading these two articles...

• The Blog Phenomenon by John D. Dvorak in PC Magazine online in February 2002

• The Blogging Revolution by Andrew Sullivan in the May 2002 issue of Wired Magazine

Dvorak, a technology columnist provided a list of reasons why people blog (i.e. write personal diaries online):
• ego gratification
• antidepersonalization
• elimination of frustration
• societal need to share
• wanna-be writers

Sullivan, a libertarian conservative author and political commentator included the following thoughts in his article...

"Blogging is changing the media world and could, I think, foment a revolution in how journalism functions in our culture."

"Blogs do two things that Web magazines like Slate and Salon simply cannot. First off, blogs are personal. Almost all of them are imbued with the temper of their writer. This personal touch is much more in tune with our current sensibility than were the opinionated magazines and newspapers of old."

"The second thing blogs do is - to invoke Marx - seize the means of production. It's hard to underestimate what a huge deal this is. For as long as journalism has existed, writers of whatever kind have had one route to readers: They needed an editor and a publisher. Even in the most benign scenario, this process subtly distorts journalism. You find yourself almost unconsciously writing to please a handful of people - the editors looking for a certain kind of story, the publishers seeking to push a particular venture, or the advertisers who influence the editors and owners. Blogging simply bypasses this ancient ritual."

He ended his column by saying, "Check back in a couple of years to see whether this is yet another concept that online reality has had the temerity to destroy."

I checked Andrew's current blog, The Daily Dish today; it is one of five Atlantic Voices offered by The Atlantic Monthly online.

I love reading and contributing to blogs for two main reasons:
1. As a reader, I learn new things from those who blog
2. As a contributor, I am stimulated to generate my own ideas or search out interesting pieces of information to share with others

I write for two others besides this one:

Infoblog, started by Infopeople in 2004 as "a resource for keeping libraries up to date with new information and technologies."

CE Buzz, started by the Continuing Library Education and Networking (CLENE) Round Table of the American Library Association (ALA) in 2007 "to provide a thought-provoking resource for those interested in and responsible for Continuing Education (CE) and staff development in libraries."