Comments on: The rise of blogs

By: Neil Sroka

Neil Sroka — Mon, 23 Jan 2006 21:43:40 +0000

Thanks to Henry for bringing this article to the attention of CT readers. It methodically lays out many of the interactions that have occurred between the political blogosphere and MS politics over the past few years. In short, its a great article to file away for later preening.

One thing that does leap out, however, is just how much research about blogging seems to be going on over at GW? While I was well aware of Henry’s work and that of a few others, it seems like GW may THE place for the study of politics and the new media phenomenon.

(Full disclosure: I’m currently a student at GW and working on project on blogging and politics. So, feel free to call me a little biased.)

By: california_reality_check

california_reality_check — Sun, 22 Jan 2006 16:28:58 +0000

More Howell today 012206

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/21/AR2006012100907.html

By: JohnLopresti

JohnLopresti — Sun, 22 Jan 2006 10:42:49 +0000

There are blog strata. The Crooked Timber paradigm is a useful way to share openly what more personalized and specialized commentless blogs protect and develop as one would one’s own journal, syllabus, and course notes.
Some wide portal blogs serve to introduce nascent thinkers to colloquy; next some escalate to thinking outside of the mere coterie.
The cryptic lexicons of specialized blogs are intriguing, and interchanging concepts on those sites hastens learning.
The most abstruse writers often are best read, studied, and observed as if a copious tome one tries to digest in a mere weekend of late nite reading by the favorite reading light.
I find one of my favorite approaches to bookish study very bloglike: some of the deepest researchers are publishing their interim papers, yet affording readers an alcove in which to speak thoughtfully to one another as well as to address the author, all the while respecting the auspicious silence of the most cavernous reading room.
Sites like Crooked Timber’s additionally offer the vast blogroll linked sites. It may present as a neural networks puzzle, a kind of stereotyped guesswork as to which door contains the hidden rabbit of knowledge, if you will pardon the mixed and diffused metaphor; but the effort, time willing, is well worth the transit.
A neat effect I am observing is the weeding pressure upon standard journalism; indeed, other media forms recognize this and are rechannelling their study and output. I agree with many commenters here that the best thinkers and writers are fairly evident. When the first time you email Josh Marshall, he launches a multiple email interchange, you know you have contacted a responsive person.
Prawfsblog occasionally launches questions like the one you state, Henry. CT has the advantage of many strong principals who build the site.

By: Seth Finkelstein

Seth Finkelstein — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 23:49:02 +0000

Sigh. Same old fallacy – “blogger” and “professional pundit” are not disjoint categories. The general class of people is exactly the same – think-tankers, policy-wonks, media talking heads, etc.

And I wish someday someone in that small circle of friends would do an examination regarding how much the CBS memos / Dan Rather story was publicized by an institutional right-wing coalition, instead of the standard mythology of it being a grassroots triumph of these entirely strange news creatures who are unlike anything ever seen in the world before.

By: asg

asg — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 20:43:52 +0000

I think it is premature to say blogs have had no effect on the Maye case. To say otherwise is to imply that his upgrade in attorney and other forward progress in getting a new trial is coincidence (and maybe it is, but it seems unlikely). The fact that his new attorney, who was public defender in the county, has been fired from that position, almost certainly as retaliation for representing Maye, also suggests that there was an effect from the publicity.

By: california_reality_check

california_reality_check — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 19:12:37 +0000

John Emerson – True. But there is a mutation happening now with Josh Micah Marshall. He has his own muckraker staff. Hope it works. I like his style even though I’ve been banned from his site.

By: DonBoy

DonBoy — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 18:46:07 +0000

Kleiman’s blog is now officially a group blog and the url has been changed:

http://www.samefacts.com/

By: John Emerson

John Emerson — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 18:21:49 +0000

The biggest things blogs do are:

1) Reduce the power of anonymous editors and layout people. They can stick things on page 16, but Atrios will pull it out. There are lots of IF Stones now, and their work is almost instantaneous. I think that this is the most important single change caused by the internet, and few seem to realize how important it is.

1) Make most pundits irrelevant, unless they’re very good (e.g. Krugman). The positional advantage of being a NYT / WAPO pundit is almost entirely gone. The policy-wonk people most likely to read Richard Cohen or Nicholas Kristoff are the same ones who are most likely to prefer internet commentators.

3.) Changes in fundraising are real but not revolutionary. It’s easier to form grass-roots movements, though, and rumor-spreading and lych-mob organization are (for better or worse) easier and quicker.

What the internet does not do: produce news content. The bloggers who do mostly are run by print journalists (Robert Parry, Josh Micah Marshall).

By: california_reality_check

california_reality_check — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 18:14:13 +0000

WaPo – Some Howell comments are back.

http://blogs.washingtonpost.com/washpostblog/