Stay

Hanna walks into the Owl Bar and so many things happen. A glass drops. No heads turn. Well, one head turns. The bathroom door slams, and the cash register opens. Mr. Bartender pulls out a twenty, crumbles it into a ball and throws it at the man who almost forgot to pay for his drink.

Response to Blogging, Journalism and Credibility (The Nation, Rebecca MacKinnon; March 17, 2005)

Background
The relationship between bloggers and journalists was a particular focus at the “Blogging, Journalism, and Credibility: Battleground and Common Ground” conference held at Harvard in late January 2005. The author includes abridged comments made during the conference by Jay Rosen (Associate professor of journalism at NYU)

Response
1. Professional journalists have “lost their monopoly of information” rightfully so, because they have abused their power. Blogs have proven to be powerful vehicles for the delivery of information. Most bloggers are not big money makers, and therefore, have nothing to lose when they share information. Most blogs have no sponsors to please (until they are bought by a Rupert Murdoch).

2. I think the world in which we live requires both bloggers and journalists. I expect the dynamics and tension between the two to shift during and after the next presidential election. Its great to have both and they can comprise a sort of truth meter, or reality meter. When mainstream press is saying “this,” we can look to the bloggers for the real story. I’m sure this can go both ways, such as white house pundits who use their blogs to spin facts to fit within their personal ideology. At the end of the day, who do you go to for the “truth” and who do you go to for “entertainment?” The problem is, journalism has become entertainment (especially broadcast journalism). Historical facts and how the relationship between that past and the present is clearly missing from most broadcast journalism. When the press fails to deliver the truth, bloggers can function as fact checkers.

3. Something I love about blogging: The audience is taking an active role, past the line of interaction, when it becomes the performer/reporter (a role reversal). That makes for interesting results, such as democratization (because of the shift in power), debate and it could make for great art. When your viewer is so inspired as to try to become you; or hold your position and fight against you. Action is the key. Inactions is when you’re in trouble. Bloggers and journalists must compete for audience attention because they share space. One is not more relevant than the other.

4. One cause of this power shift is increased accessibility. The ability to express is empowering, and the world wide web provides a space in which people can feel empowered. There are many downfalls too, for example, sexual predators easily accessing dorm room addresses belonging to unsuspecting young women.

5. I’m pleased that pressure is being put on mainstream media. Critical examination is key. It is so in the arts as well. I see it all the time in dance reviews. Critics are trying to benefit the dying dance community by simply describing the concerts, thereby not expressing any real critique. In the presence of serious criticism, there lies great opportunity to reevaluate one’s intent, content and process.

6. Jay Rosen states that blogging is “adapted to two-way dialogue” but this is not always the case. Some blogs don’t allow viewers to post responses unless they have a password (exclusive), such as Gawker in which you must prove to be part of the media establishment before you are given permission to post comments on the blog.

7. Blogs can also be viewed as original sources. Oral histories. Except, now there is some level of celebrity involved w/ blogging- in the sense that the blogger belongs to an audience and it values what you have to say. Therefore, bloggers may start writing what the audience expects to hear from them.

Blogs I came across while considering the cultural impact of blogs:

www.blogforamerica.com - offers online training program for campaigning
From the website:
Blog for America (BFA) is the official weblog of Democracy for America. It began on March 15, 2003 as a communication tool of the former Dean for America campaign. BFA was the first ever official blog of a presidential candidate.

http://makezine.com/blog/ - weblog devoted entirely to DIY technology projects

http://www.lessig.org/blog/ - Lawrence Lessig’s blog. Links to a youtube video of three researchers from Princeton demonstrating how one could hack a Diebold voting machine and undetectably alter election results.

www.back-to-iraq.com
From Lawrence Lessig’s website:
Chris Allbritton, a former AP and New York Daily News reporter, became what Wired called “the Web’s first independent war correspondent.” He did it by asking readers of his blog to send him to Iraq at their expense. Allbritton raised $14,500 from 342 donors on a simple promise: that he would send back from the war original and honest reporting, free of commercial pressures, pack thinking, and patriotic hype. A Business Week report even asked of Allbritton’s pay-to-read model, “Is this the future of journalism?” Cuts out the media all together.