Why we blog
One of the original A-list bloggers, Andrew Sullivan, recently wrote an article for The Atlantic called Why I Blog. I think it’s a must-read for anyone immersed in blogging, whether through writing one or from reading and commenting on favorites. Lots of good stuff here, I’ll try to highlight a couple.
First, something that serves as almost a direct rebuttal to Andrew Keen:
In an era when the traditional media found itself beset by scandals as disparate as Stephen Glass, Jayson Blair, and Dan Rather, bloggers survived the first assault on their worth. In time, in fact, the high standards expected of well-trafficked bloggers spilled over into greater accountability, transparency, and punctiliousness among the media powers that were. Even New York Times columnists were forced to admit when they had been wrong.
I think this is true. Contradictions and falsehoods can be exposed quickly, on the blog itself if there are comments enabled. Rebukes don’t filter through letters to the editor, they land right on your work and your e-mail. Now, it might not always be nice feedback, but as Sullivan puts it, “Rudeness, in any case, isn’t the worst thing that can happen to a blogger.”
Other things — the immediacy of it captures how a blogger feels in real time and creates a bond between the blogger and reader that you would never get in front. This is highlighted very well in how his blog readers meeting him for the first time will call him Andrew, while for readers of his print columns, it’s Mr. Sullivan. Quick, name some New York Times reporters! This personal connection isn’t everything but I do think it has its place. It helps to put what a blogger writes in the proper context. It won’t immediately be accepted as capital-T Truth, but may well provide some insight.
And I especially like the jazz analogy at the end. Jazz isn’t all there is to music, but the music world is much richer for it existing. At this point in my life, there is no way I am going to subscribe to any library journals or reserve a big portion of my time to go out and sit in a library to read them. But I certainly do feel up to getting quick hits from library bloggers that help me think beyond being in school and to what all’s going on out there. Blogging doesn’t affect library services too much on a day-to-day basis, but there are a solid number of librarians out there who have gotten renown in the field through blogging and are now in a position to do conferences and other things that will also help shape the future of librarianship. All through the force of their ideas breaking through the din based on merit. I think that’s a good thing.
