"We blog, therefore we are" says the tag line for one blog directory. The discussion on the affect of blogging on the sports-media landscape on Costas Now got me thinking on why people blog. Blogs are opinion; when I blog, I am exercising my right to freedom of expression further enabled by the democratization of publishing because of the internet. My blog is what and how I feel about what and how things are… is it all fact? No. It is opinion about facts.
By blogging I am also indulging in what Friedman refers to as "information arbitrage:" buying information from one place and then reselling that information at another place. You cannot be a good publisher without being an involved consumer, so I read a lot of blogs. And in doing that I am "subscribing to people, instead of magazines."
Interesting point someone made the other day about blogs being a tool for self indulgence… but there is an element of self indulgence involved each time you are expressing an opinion… opinions are personal and everyone has them… some tend to express them a lot more. Hey but isn't it a lot easier to stop reading than to stop listening?
There is no denying the fact that blogging has become an important factor in the consumption of information on the internet. The question becomes: do we as bloggers need to adhere to the same ethics code that journalists (are supposed to) adhere to? We do have a certain responsibility to people that are subscribing to our opinions and sensationalism isn't always the most effective way of engaging your readers. When one engages their audience, one is able to listen and speak. At the same time there are different reasons for people blogging and therefore different levels of responsibilities - I do expect a lot more responsibility from a CEO blogging on his company blog…
If you are those very few lucky ones out there that can actually inspire people through blogs… then you should be blogging. But one thing I can tell for sure (opinion =)) if Adam Smith and Karl Marx were alive today, they both would've been bloggers… and would have commented on each other's blogs… ah utopia… speaking of which Moore would've been a blogger too.
And I think to myself… what a wonderful world.
