The Volokh Conspiracy - Blogging and Blog-Reading -- Why and Why Not:

I was invited to be on a panel about blogging, before an audience a group of journalists who aren't very blog-knowledgeable, so I've put together a brief summary of "Blogging and Blog-Reading -- Why and Why Not."

It's a short list of short points, so don't expect it to cover everything, or to cover everything in detail; and it's old hat to most experienced blog readers. Still, in case some of you are interested, I enclose it below:

Blogging and Blog-Reading: Why and Why Not
(mostly focused on public affairs blogs, which is the area I most follow)

by Eugene Volokh, Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law,
and founder and coauthor, The Volokh Conspiracy, http://volokh.com

Tips for thinking about blogs:

A. For most blogs, think magazine, not newspaper: Mostly analysis and opinion on news events (and sometimes on broader topics), rather than original news cover-age.

B. For most remaining blogs, think editor, not writer: Mostly selection of links to others' work, rather than original material.

Why readers like to read blogs (sometimes more than they like to read a newspaper):

1. Expertise: Some bloggers know more about the subjects they cover than do most journalists.

2. Personal flavor: Blogs tend to reflect the blogger's interests and voice, and readers often tend to feel a more personal connection with the writer than they do with journalists.

3. Original sources: Blogs tend to link to original sources—for instance, articles they criticize, court opinions they report on, and transcripts they quote.

4. Ideological compatibility: Just as some readers prefer The Nation, some The New Republic, and some the National Review, so readers would prefer news coverage from sources that they find ideologically congenial and trustworthy. For many libertarians and conservatives, few news media (especially few text news media) provide this. Blogging fills that gap.

5. Selection judgment: Some blogs, like InstaPundit.com, primarily link to others' work, rather than posting a lot of original text of their own. In this respect, they're like newspaper or magazine editors, choosing which stories their readers would find interesting. Sometimes, you might find that a blogger's selection judg-ment matches your own more than your local newspaper editor's does.

6. Coverage of topics that other media don't cover, or don't cover in depth: Specialty topics (e.g., developments on the right to bear arms) and genres that newspapers find to be not worthy enough (e.g., detailed criticism of articles in other media).

7. Thorough coverage of a particular issue: A blogger who's interested in an issue may cover it in more detail than a typical newspaper would.

8. Note: Many blog readers may not read newspapers, but they read newspaper articles. Instead of reading one whole newspaper, they go to blogs (or other sites) and then read the articles—in a wide range of newspapers—that the blogs link to.

Barriers to readers' reading blogs:

1. The chief barrier is not the fact that many blogs are boring, inaccurate, and generally not worth reading. Would you say "I don't read books, because most books are boring, inaccurate, and generally not worth reading"?

2. Rather, the barrier is finding those blogs that interest you and are ac-curate (just as it is for books).

3. Possible solution: Blogs often link to other blogs (much more than newspapers link to other newspapers), usually with extracts from a recent post on the other blog. These links can act as recommendations that help readers find new blogs they like.

Why bloggers like to blog:

1. They enjoy spreading their ideas.

2. They enjoy having the freedom to discuss what they want to discuss, when they want to discuss it (no news hook requirements), in the length and depth they want to discuss it.

3. They enjoy the personal connection that blogging generate with their readers (much more than op-eds do, even when the op-ed is ready by many more people).

4. They may sometimes get or increase their reputation for knowledge and ar-ticulateness, which can help them in their day jobs.

Why people may not want to blog:

1. Takes time and effort.

2. Yields zero money for most, a little for some, decent money only for a very few.

3. May make one a controversial figure, which may be bad for some day jobs.

4. Off-hand remarks on controversial topics sometimes push you to spend much more effort than you ever intended on follow-ups, rebuttals, and the like.

5. Don't blog if you aren't willing to get (and ignore) nasty e-mail.

	[Eugene Volokh, April 8, 2005 at 6:49pm] Trackbacks Blogging and Blog-Reading -- Why and Why Not: I was invited to be on a panel about blogging, before an audience a group of journalists who aren't very blog-knowledgeable, so I've put together a brief summary of "Blogging and Blog-Reading -- Why and Why Not." It's a short list of short points, so don't expect it to cover everything, or to cover everything in detail; and it's old hat to most experienced blog readers. Still, in case some of you are interested, I enclose it below: Blogging and Blog-Reading: Why and Why Not (mostly focused on public affairs blogs, which is the area I most follow) by Eugene Volokh, Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law, and founder and coauthor, The Volokh Conspiracy, http://volokh.com Tips for thinking about blogs: A. For most blogs, think magazine, not newspaper: Mostly analysis and opinion on news events (and sometimes on broader topics), rather than original news cover-age. B. For most remaining blogs, think editor, not writer: Mostly selection of links to others' work, rather than original material. Why readers like to read blogs (sometimes more than they like to read a newspaper): 1. Expertise: Some bloggers know more about the subjects they cover than do most journalists. 2. Personal flavor: Blogs tend to reflect the blogger's interests and voice, and readers often tend to feel a more personal connection with the writer than they do with journalists. 3. Original sources: Blogs tend to link to original sources—for instance, articles they criticize, court opinions they report on, and transcripts they quote. 4. Ideological compatibility: Just as some readers prefer The Nation, some The New Republic, and some the National Review, so readers would prefer news coverage from sources that they find ideologically congenial and trustworthy. For many libertarians and conservatives, few news media (especially few text news media) provide this. Blogging fills that gap. 5. Selection judgment: Some blogs, like InstaPundit.com, primarily link to others' work, rather than posting a lot of original text of their own. In this respect, they're like newspaper or magazine editors, choosing which stories their readers would find interesting. Sometimes, you might find that a blogger's selection judg-ment matches your own more than your local newspaper editor's does. 6. Coverage of topics that other media don't cover, or don't cover in depth: Specialty topics (e.g., developments on the right to bear arms) and genres that newspapers find to be not worthy enough (e.g., detailed criticism of articles in other media). 7. Thorough coverage of a particular issue: A blogger who's interested in an issue may cover it in more detail than a typical newspaper would. 8. Note: Many blog readers may not read newspapers, but they read newspaper articles. Instead of reading one whole newspaper, they go to blogs (or other sites) and then read the articles—in a wide range of newspapers—that the blogs link to. Barriers to readers' reading blogs: 1. The chief barrier is not the fact that many blogs are boring, inaccurate, and generally not worth reading. Would you say "I don't read books, because most books are boring, inaccurate, and generally not worth reading"? 2. Rather, the barrier is finding those blogs that interest you and are ac-curate (just as it is for books). 3. Possible solution: Blogs often link to other blogs (much more than newspapers link to other newspapers), usually with extracts from a recent post on the other blog. These links can act as recommendations that help readers find new blogs they like. Why bloggers like to blog: 1. They enjoy spreading their ideas. 2. They enjoy having the freedom to discuss what they want to discuss, when they want to discuss it (no news hook requirements), in the length and depth they want to discuss it. 3. They enjoy the personal connection that blogging generate with their readers (much more than op-eds do, even when the op-ed is ready by many more people). 4. They may sometimes get or increase their reputation for knowledge and ar-ticulateness, which can help them in their day jobs. Why people may not want to blog: 1. Takes time and effort. 2. Yields zero money for most, a little for some, decent money only for a very few. 3. May make one a controversial figure, which may be bad for some day jobs. 4. Off-hand remarks on controversial topics sometimes push you to spend much more effort than you ever intended on follow-ups, rebuttals, and the like. 5. Don't blog if you aren't willing to get (and ignore) nasty e-mail.