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This weblog was developed and is supported by the Bernard L. Schwartz Communication Institute, Baruch College, CUNY
Aug
24
Coming of age
Posted by Vera Haller on Aug 24, 2008 under: blogs, community journalism, journalism education, newspapers, online news, politics
The convention season now upon us will not just result in the official naming of the presidential candidates for the Democratic and Republican parties. If you read all the hype in the media, the conventions also will mark a milestone for political bloggers — legitimatizing them beyond any lingering doubts.
The articles stating this apparent truth are countless. Just today, readers on nytimes.com can read, “The Year of the Political Blogger Has Arrived.” Look back a few days and find this column on The Times of London’s Web site that states the Democratic National Convention (starting tomorrow in Denver) has been hit with “Obamedia frenzy.” The column by Richard Siklos contends that blogs such as Politico and The Huffington Post are as hot a commodity as the candidate himself.
In fact, bloggers are taking center stage at the DNC gathering — even warranting the construction of a two-story tent (sponsored by Google among others; see photo from Flickr) where credentialed bloggers will have free WiFi and other amenities. For a list of the accredited bloggers, see this page on the DNC Web site. It will be a good place to start if you want to sample some of the blogging that’s coming off of the convention floor.
If you’re wondering where the political heavyweights go for their political news, check out this link: www.google.com/powerreaders. Here, Google says it has collected the sites read by the two candidates, John McCain and Obama, as well as the sites followed by political journalists.
Save the date. On Oct. 28, the Baruch College Journalism Department will sponsor a panel discussion on the impact political blogging has had on this presidential election. More details to come.
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5 Responses to “Coming of age”
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I find it fascinating how blogging has evolved into a pivotal medium of discussion, despite many of them being written by everyday,well informed people.
While in high school, I remember hearing about the growing influence of the “blogoshere”, which seemed to formally take shape behind the political backdrop of the Bush and Kerry presidential elections.
I never anticipated the impact it would have today among political, social and pop culture discussion. The momentum that it has gained over the past five years seems to indicate its inevitable growth in popularity and evolution .
Who could’ve ever imagined the force blogging would generate? I would never envision the presidential hopefuls or any event of this level utilizing the voice of bloggers. When I think of blogging, I think of the voice of those never having the ability to be heard, now possessing a tone that echoes to millions. It seems the idea of having a voice and using this voice during a political convention makes sense because the idea behind politics is having a voice and using it.
Blogging gives those who aren’t considered likable to now become the eye of attention especially when their view is widely accepted.
Blogging isn’t new because it’s been around since the establishment of the internet but the modern form of blogging started in the mid 90’s. It’s amazing to see how far blogging has come.
The evolution of blogging can’t be underestimated nor should it be unappreciated. It has essentially become the bedrock, the very foundation, from which news reaches its audiences.
When news breaks these days, the newspaper is no longer the medium by which we turn to for instant knowledge. To some extent, even the television has taken somewhat of a backseat to the internet.
Blogging has been and continues to be a very effective tool in giving inquiring minds an opportunity to not only understand what is going on but also to let their voices be heard, something that a newspaper nor television can instantaneously provide!
If any jabroni with a computer can seriously affect political discourse in this country, I think we have a major problem.
While the traditional news media has shifted to a more tabloid oriented style of reporting, it is good to see that there are people who can get their well informed opinions out there, a few even to major news outlets. The downside is that in such an instance of John McCain granting 200 press passes to bloggers, many questions remain, such as are they simply regurgitating the talking points?(Fox News for the Bush Administration) Are they all checked for accuracy?(Barack Obama is a muslim) Or how much favoritism goes into a blog, especially one with a name such as “HorsesAss”