Your mom blogs
Writing about the death of blogs is apparently the new black. Many pundits are mourning or celebrating the death of blogs – many of them…wait for it…on their own blogs.
Blogs are not going anywhere. In fact, having a blog is almost tantamount to having an email address.
And many who don’t blog don’t even know they are blogging. Here’s Wikipedia’s definition:
Usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order.
If you post your whereabouts, what you’re feeling or what you did last night on Facebook, then you’re blogging. Posting on Twitter? You’re blogging. Sure, messages and posts are splintering into bite-sized posts on services such as Twitter and FriendFeed. But you’re still blogging.
Here’s the deal. Blogging used to be the playing field of a select, elite few who worked hard, gained readership and even made some money. They challenged the mainstream media with their own content. They become celebrities.
So, what’s the beef? Blogging is mainstream and a bit worn [and writing about blogs is mainstream and a bit tired – our apologies] which apparently doesn’t sit well with some of the blogging pioneers. It’s not an exclusive club anymore. And it reminds me of when I was younger when music snob friends of mine would pooh-pooh a band after their first album. “They were so good on their first tour when no one but myself and a select few knew about them. Now that they’re popular they’re not good anymore.”
Now anyone can “do a blog.” Many, if not most, stink. But like nature the lousy ones won’t get read and will fall to the wayside and only the strong will survive. The phony, spammy blogs will proliferate but won’t last either.
Readers have also gotten more sophisticated and have learned how to quickly filter out the weaker blogs. If you’re using a blog to spread your message or push spam or an agenda, people are sophisticated enough to read between the lines. Have something to say of value to your readers at least.
Most traditional publications have an online presence and employ bloggers, some paid, some non-paid. They finally understand the value. Blogging is no longer revolutionary or edgy – it is now a mere part of the media landscape.
And it’s way too early to be writing an obit for it.
