The Big O on Blogs
Jeff Alworth Oct 23 2005
http://www.blueoregon.com/2005/10/the_big_o_on_bl.html
Since its new redesign--which seems in part a response to the popularity of blogs--the Oregonian has run commentary about blogs by Regina Lawrence, a PSU professor of political science. In today's issue, Lawrence discusses the function and use of blogs--and she completely misses the boat. She argues that blogs are now dominated by a few main sites (she identifies Drudge and the Free Republic, neither of which are blogs) which dominate all discourse. These dominant blogs are guilty of the same crime they accuse the mainstream media of committing--focusing too narrowly on a few stories--which further skews reality. Finally, blogs, acting in reaction to the "failures" they identify in the MSM, are hopelessly partisan.
Lawrence, as a political scientist, may be measuring the effect of blogs on the political process. Based on the success of the liberal blogs, candidates like Howard Dean and Paul Hackett have managed to mount surprising dark-horse campaigns, buoyed by support and dollars from a previously-disconnected base. In this regard, her analysis of the effect of blogs may be accurate. But as an analysis of blogs as emergent media, she misses the actual function of the blogosphere and patterns of consumption. Worse, by addressing content at the expense of delivery, she misses blogs' most potent function.
Let's take function first. Blogs don't exist, like mainstream outlets, as stand-alone media. Blogs would surely wither and die if they didn't exist as a neural net. Because bloggers don't have vast newsrooms, they depend on other bloggers to cover the entire newscape. To argue that they all cover the same thing is willful blindness: Juan Cole, an expert on the Middle East, almost never expresses an opinion on domestic political races, but is the blogosphere's go-to guy on Iraq. Look at the top fifty leftist blogs, and you'll find just the opposite of what Lawrence describes: a sorting out of the best bloggers by subject area. Kos, which she eventually does cite, is the go-to guy for political strategies, while Josh Marshall is the inside man on Washington scuttlebutt, and Brad DeLong and Max Sawicky (professors both) cover economics. Other blogs cover the environment, law, labor, and media.
In terms of consumption, I'm wary of her reading of the numbers. Blog readers do tend to select a few central players (she identifies aggregate stats to support this). But then readers also add a few other sites that have more focused content or smaller readership. BlueOregon is a perfect example (as was, alas, the now-defunct Communique). No one that I know of has done an in-depth survey of blog readership, but the existence and traffic of blogs like this one demonstrate that while the bigs pull in the lion's share of readers, other blogs can find their own robust readership.
But the biggest mistake Lawrence makes is confusing blogs as just another content-delivery medium. This is a mistake the MSM has made from the start, and they do it at their peril. The reality is that blogs are the first organic, interactive medium. They are focal points for ongoing conversations. When I booted up BlueOregon this morning, I saw that Jack Roberts had joined the discussion on a post about an interview he'd done on another blog. This kind of conversation has never existed before--and can't, within the confines of a daily print newspaper or TV broadcast.
While the MSM is busy panicking about the fragmentation of media, bloggers are seizing on it. Not everyone can join in a conversation about whether Jack Roberts should run for the Supreme Court--but as newspapers know, very few would even want to. The O has recently shifted its local content away from politics precisely because there aren't enough readers interested in it. The O has a daily circulation of 350,000 readers. BlueOregon's is less than 1% of that figure--though at 2,000 hits, it's one of the "bigger" blogs. We capitalize on the interest of the readers that the Oregonian can no longer well serve--exactly the reverse of the trend Lawrence sees.
Blogs are a poor substitute for newspapers. Few of them are hosted by professional journalists, and most of them depend on newspaper reportage to craft their posts. (This post is an example.) But blogs aren't trying to deliver the news. They're trying to make sense of the news. Had Lawrence pondered their efficacy on that score, she might have come away with a different conclusion. I'd love to see the O continue to look at the effect blogs are having--but they must be critiques based on someone who actually understands the medium.
Monday, October 24, 2005
Now 19.5 million blogs on the Internet....
Blogs stray further afield
Posted on Mon, Oct. 24, 2005
The Journal Gazette
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/living/12983821.htm
Gerard Voland
There now are 19.5 million Web logs – or blogs – on the Internet, with an estimated 12,000 sites created each day, according to Technorati.com.
ComScore Networks estimated that nearly 50 million people visited blog sites during the first three months of 2005.
Blogs received immense media attention during the 2004 presidential election when certain postings indicated that CBS News had not properly verified the authenticity of documents used to buttress its claims about President Bush’s National Guard service. Beyond politics, blogs also have had a significant effect on product design and marketing, as in the case of Kryptonite bicycle locks that were found to be easily opened with a ballpoint pen, leading to a product exchange program by the firm that is estimated to have cost $10million.
Web logs first appeared in the late 1990s as personal diaries. Since that time, not only have their numbers grown dramatically, but the types of blogs also have expanded from the diary to interactive sites where visitors can post comments and formal company blogs used to promote products and enhance customer good will.
Certain blogs are internal Web sites accessible only to those within the host firm or organization. Although many public blogs encourage postings by visitors, some accept commentary from a only a select group of invited authors.
Certain Web sites provide visitors with the opportunity to easily create their own blogs, increasing the number of blogs managed by those with little technical skill but who wish to publicly proclaim their views and communicate with others in the blogosphere. These blog development sites include blogger.com, sixapart.com/typepad, and livejournal.com.
Company blogs are becoming increasingly popular as mechanisms through which a firm can internally communicate its ideas, policies and research results among its employees while better coordinating projects. Companies also use public versions of their blogs to introduce and promote new products, respond to market changes and post commentaries on current industry topics. Boeing, IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Verizon and Microsoft are among the many companies with corporate blog sites.
The more mature and established blogs are supported through paid advertising. Because a community of frequent visitors often forms around a blog that focuses on a topic of mutual interest, it makes sense that certain firms with services or products that might appeal to that group would advertise on the site. The danger for advertisers is that controversial statements or offensive language might be posted on the blog, linking the firm to this material.
Some sites use software filters to prevent objectionable language or inappropriate topics from being posted. An extreme example of this approach is used by mainland China to prevent its 3 million bloggers from posting certain political or other unacceptable comments. An alternative approach is used by Kaboose.com, which hires parents to act as chaperones to oversee the content of postings and online conversations among the children visiting its Web site.
Other challenges within the blogosphere include how best to ensure the accuracy of posted information so visitors can discern facts from opinion, and how best to deal with the ever-increasing volume of blogs so that Internet search engines can lead visitors to the most relevant sites and postings.
Public debate recently has focused on the effect of blogs on conventional news coverage, leading some to wonder whether the role of the mainstream media will be marginalized as the public increasingly relies upon the Internet for news and information. In fact, the Kryptonite lock case, the 2004 presidential election and other instances suggest that print and broadcast journalists will continue to serve society in primary roles that cannot be filled by bloggers alone.
Bloggers essentially acted as the catalysts for initial scrutiny of the claims made in these cases, but conventional media provided the public stage and considerable resources that were necessary for comprehensive investigations to be launched. It only was five days after the first blog posting about the Kryptonite lock design that major news media outlets such as the New York Times and the Associated Press turned their spotlights on the issue as well, and then only five more days before the firm reversed its public assertion that the lock was effective and launched its exchange program.
After other major news organizations began to focus on the veracity of the CBS allegations about the president’s National Guard service, the broadcast giant began to back away from its claims. Bloggers can confirm and publicize information by working together as a community, but the conventional news media are able to devote a broader array of resources for investigation and wider public discourse. The reality is that bloggers and the mainstream media need to work together to properly serve the public.
Gerard Voland is dean of the School of Engineering, Technology and Computer Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne.
Posted on Mon, Oct. 24, 2005
The Journal Gazette
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/living/12983821.htm
Gerard Voland
There now are 19.5 million Web logs – or blogs – on the Internet, with an estimated 12,000 sites created each day, according to Technorati.com.
ComScore Networks estimated that nearly 50 million people visited blog sites during the first three months of 2005.
Blogs received immense media attention during the 2004 presidential election when certain postings indicated that CBS News had not properly verified the authenticity of documents used to buttress its claims about President Bush’s National Guard service. Beyond politics, blogs also have had a significant effect on product design and marketing, as in the case of Kryptonite bicycle locks that were found to be easily opened with a ballpoint pen, leading to a product exchange program by the firm that is estimated to have cost $10million.
Web logs first appeared in the late 1990s as personal diaries. Since that time, not only have their numbers grown dramatically, but the types of blogs also have expanded from the diary to interactive sites where visitors can post comments and formal company blogs used to promote products and enhance customer good will.
Certain blogs are internal Web sites accessible only to those within the host firm or organization. Although many public blogs encourage postings by visitors, some accept commentary from a only a select group of invited authors.
Certain Web sites provide visitors with the opportunity to easily create their own blogs, increasing the number of blogs managed by those with little technical skill but who wish to publicly proclaim their views and communicate with others in the blogosphere. These blog development sites include blogger.com, sixapart.com/typepad, and livejournal.com.
Company blogs are becoming increasingly popular as mechanisms through which a firm can internally communicate its ideas, policies and research results among its employees while better coordinating projects. Companies also use public versions of their blogs to introduce and promote new products, respond to market changes and post commentaries on current industry topics. Boeing, IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Verizon and Microsoft are among the many companies with corporate blog sites.
The more mature and established blogs are supported through paid advertising. Because a community of frequent visitors often forms around a blog that focuses on a topic of mutual interest, it makes sense that certain firms with services or products that might appeal to that group would advertise on the site. The danger for advertisers is that controversial statements or offensive language might be posted on the blog, linking the firm to this material.
Some sites use software filters to prevent objectionable language or inappropriate topics from being posted. An extreme example of this approach is used by mainland China to prevent its 3 million bloggers from posting certain political or other unacceptable comments. An alternative approach is used by Kaboose.com, which hires parents to act as chaperones to oversee the content of postings and online conversations among the children visiting its Web site.
Other challenges within the blogosphere include how best to ensure the accuracy of posted information so visitors can discern facts from opinion, and how best to deal with the ever-increasing volume of blogs so that Internet search engines can lead visitors to the most relevant sites and postings.
Public debate recently has focused on the effect of blogs on conventional news coverage, leading some to wonder whether the role of the mainstream media will be marginalized as the public increasingly relies upon the Internet for news and information. In fact, the Kryptonite lock case, the 2004 presidential election and other instances suggest that print and broadcast journalists will continue to serve society in primary roles that cannot be filled by bloggers alone.
Bloggers essentially acted as the catalysts for initial scrutiny of the claims made in these cases, but conventional media provided the public stage and considerable resources that were necessary for comprehensive investigations to be launched. It only was five days after the first blog posting about the Kryptonite lock design that major news media outlets such as the New York Times and the Associated Press turned their spotlights on the issue as well, and then only five more days before the firm reversed its public assertion that the lock was effective and launched its exchange program.
After other major news organizations began to focus on the veracity of the CBS allegations about the president’s National Guard service, the broadcast giant began to back away from its claims. Bloggers can confirm and publicize information by working together as a community, but the conventional news media are able to devote a broader array of resources for investigation and wider public discourse. The reality is that bloggers and the mainstream media need to work together to properly serve the public.
Gerard Voland is dean of the School of Engineering, Technology and Computer Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne.
Google Moves Against Spam Blogs
Google Moves Against Spam Blogs
by Shankar Gupta, Monday, Oct 24, 2005 6:00 AM EST
Online Media Daily
RESPONDING TO GROWING COMPLAINTS ABOUT spam blogs, or "splogs," Google implemented new security measures to make it more difficult for users of its blogging service to create and maintain fake blogs.
"We pushed out a change that will prompt some users to solve a CAPTCHA if our spam classifier identifies the blog as spammy," wrote Google's Blogger Product Manager, Jason Goldman, on Blogger Buzz. "So far, we have observed a slight decrease in the amount of spam being created." The "CAPTCHA" test is a method by which automated programs that post or create blogs can be foiled--where the user is asked to type in a sequence of letters from a line that people can read, but computers can't decipher.
Spam blogs generally fall into one of two categories: Link farms, which pack hundreds or even thousands of blogs with gibberish or recycled content, and contain multiple links to a particular Web site, which allow them to game Google's PageRank algorithm, creating artificially high organic search rankings; and spam blogs that simply recycle content with AdSense or other advertising on them in the hopes of making money from errant users clicking on the ads.
Pete Blackshaw, chief marketing officer of Intelliseek, a firm that monitors and searches blog content, said that spam blogs--especially on Blogger--present a major problem for the corporate blogosphere. "We predict 30 percent of all the new blogs are spam-oriented," he said. "To some extent, it risks killing the bloom. It's hard enough to convince companies to blog, and spam blogs are giving them a really easy out: 'why would I want to deal with this?'
Blackshaw also said that spam blogs pose a threat to major brand names as well--certain popular brands or even Hollywood celebrities can find their names being exploited to drive traffic to spam blogs. "Most brands have no idea that they're being used as bait, but that's a taint on the brand--no brand wants to be associated with garbage," he said. "We might start to see some brands raise some tough questions about how they're used in these spam blogs in the same way that tough questions have been raised about buying certain keywords on Google," he said, referring to the Google-Geico lawsuit in which the search giant was accused of profiting by allowing competing advertisers to buy Geico's name as a keyword ad.
David Sifry, CEO and founder of blog search engine Technorati, had a much lower estimate of the percentage of blogs that were spam--2 to 8 percent--but said that spam blogs were an inevitable feature of the blogosphere. "Every health ecosystem has parasites," he said. "The really big question here, though, is--is it manageable?"
He added that major search engines, blog search engines, and net advertisers have begun working together to eliminate the economic incentive for spam blogging by identifying spam blogs at the source and simply not indexing them. "In the case of Web spam--and the reason I'm so much more optimistic about it than e-mail spam--is that in the end, it's all about accountability," he said. "The difference with Web is that in the end, every single thing on the Web has a URL. If you see one domain that's sending a lot of suspicious content, you can stop it right there at the source."
Sifry took a wait-and-see attitude toward Blogger's most recent move to cut down on spam blogs, but said that excessive measures to curb spam could damage the freedom inherent to the blogosphere. "This is a larger issue of how can you deal with the fact that you've built an open system," he said. "We want to make it easy to let people create content--but still enforce a good level of accountability and reputation."
by Shankar Gupta, Monday, Oct 24, 2005 6:00 AM EST
Online Media Daily
RESPONDING TO GROWING COMPLAINTS ABOUT spam blogs, or "splogs," Google implemented new security measures to make it more difficult for users of its blogging service to create and maintain fake blogs.
"We pushed out a change that will prompt some users to solve a CAPTCHA if our spam classifier identifies the blog as spammy," wrote Google's Blogger Product Manager, Jason Goldman, on Blogger Buzz. "So far, we have observed a slight decrease in the amount of spam being created." The "CAPTCHA" test is a method by which automated programs that post or create blogs can be foiled--where the user is asked to type in a sequence of letters from a line that people can read, but computers can't decipher.
Spam blogs generally fall into one of two categories: Link farms, which pack hundreds or even thousands of blogs with gibberish or recycled content, and contain multiple links to a particular Web site, which allow them to game Google's PageRank algorithm, creating artificially high organic search rankings; and spam blogs that simply recycle content with AdSense or other advertising on them in the hopes of making money from errant users clicking on the ads.
Pete Blackshaw, chief marketing officer of Intelliseek, a firm that monitors and searches blog content, said that spam blogs--especially on Blogger--present a major problem for the corporate blogosphere. "We predict 30 percent of all the new blogs are spam-oriented," he said. "To some extent, it risks killing the bloom. It's hard enough to convince companies to blog, and spam blogs are giving them a really easy out: 'why would I want to deal with this?'
Blackshaw also said that spam blogs pose a threat to major brand names as well--certain popular brands or even Hollywood celebrities can find their names being exploited to drive traffic to spam blogs. "Most brands have no idea that they're being used as bait, but that's a taint on the brand--no brand wants to be associated with garbage," he said. "We might start to see some brands raise some tough questions about how they're used in these spam blogs in the same way that tough questions have been raised about buying certain keywords on Google," he said, referring to the Google-Geico lawsuit in which the search giant was accused of profiting by allowing competing advertisers to buy Geico's name as a keyword ad.
David Sifry, CEO and founder of blog search engine Technorati, had a much lower estimate of the percentage of blogs that were spam--2 to 8 percent--but said that spam blogs were an inevitable feature of the blogosphere. "Every health ecosystem has parasites," he said. "The really big question here, though, is--is it manageable?"
He added that major search engines, blog search engines, and net advertisers have begun working together to eliminate the economic incentive for spam blogging by identifying spam blogs at the source and simply not indexing them. "In the case of Web spam--and the reason I'm so much more optimistic about it than e-mail spam--is that in the end, it's all about accountability," he said. "The difference with Web is that in the end, every single thing on the Web has a URL. If you see one domain that's sending a lot of suspicious content, you can stop it right there at the source."
Sifry took a wait-and-see attitude toward Blogger's most recent move to cut down on spam blogs, but said that excessive measures to curb spam could damage the freedom inherent to the blogosphere. "This is a larger issue of how can you deal with the fact that you've built an open system," he said. "We want to make it easy to let people create content--but still enforce a good level of accountability and reputation."
Take a look at some of the earlier items...
Welcome to Denise, Gillian and Huseyin who are completing the Online Master's programme at Manchester University. It would be worth your while taking a look at some of the early articles on this Blog by clicking on Sep 2004 on the sidebar. They will help with the blogging assignments
I advise you to try and start up a blog of your own, just to get a feel for it. Even better do your assignment in the form of a blog - but that isn't mandatory
Bernard
I advise you to try and start up a blog of your own, just to get a feel for it. Even better do your assignment in the form of a blog - but that isn't mandatory
Bernard
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
