Discussion: Blogs–Reality TV of the Web?
Annie Wilson
Are blogs a passing trend or are they here to stay? In the article, Blogs http://www.learningcircuits.org/2002/apr2002/cross.html, Jay Cross explains why blogs ‘work’ and argues that they are gaining popularity. One of his reasons is that blogs “are personal and unfiltered. Real people, rather than corporate PR departments or ad agencies, write them.” This initial description brought to mind shows like Big Brother or America’s Next Top Model, cheaply produced shows that have taken over American television (and television in other countries), and which I hope are a fad. But what makes blogs different? Clearly, there are some really well made, high quality blogs very worth our time (Cross provides links to some great examples) and many, many others that are not. Despite the many personal blogs that I might find fascinating, I wondered why I never read any. I remember when my friend Ron went to Korea for an adventurous year abroad. Whenever I would email him asking him how it was going, he would reply, “check my blog.” I hardly ever did. Perhaps I would have had he sent an e-mail when he update it, link included. It wasn’t until the end of the article that I realized why I never got on the blogger bandwagon–I had never had one of my own. Cross includes a quote from Adam Curry who said, “[children] desire and require an audience for their thoughts and achievements.” they add, “The simple intuitive nature of SchoolBlogs is precisely what’s required to allow students to express themselves on their own terms.” I’d say most adults do too. But I think the thing that most attracts me to blogs is the connection to an online community. Now I’m looking forward to having my own blog and hosting many links to others (even Ron’s ).
Nina Liakos
Again, my story is similar (great minds think alike…?). A colleague of mine has gone off to Indonesia to run a language school there. Instead of emailing back news, he started a blog. I tried to follow it but the entries were long (besides backwards!) and it took time. I found myself putting off going there because I was busy. Also, it felt impersonal. I never felt like I wanted to add a comment. Occasionally I would just email him a comment, but when he did not respond the communication died.
Perhaps you are right and if I had a blog of my own I would feel differently. However, it wouldn’t give me more time to examine other people’s blogs–less, rather
