According to the search engine Technorati, the number of blogs grew from eight million in March 2005 to over 72 million last month worldwide. The number of daily blog posts increased from 500,000 in March 2005 to 1.4 million in March 2006 - meaning 58,000 posts an hour. Talk about posting frequency! But the Technorati report also showed that the overall rate of blogosphere growth has slowed down. (And we didn’t feel a thing.)
[Source: Yahoo]
According to a new We Media/Zogby poll, a majority of Americans said that bloggers are important to the future of journalism. Over 70 percent said that citizen journalism will play a critical role in the media revolution.
And here’s the kicker: Almost nine out of 10 media insiders responded that bloggers will play a vital part in reshaping journalism.
We are now seeing mainstream acceptance of what we call the Power of Us - the value, credibility, and vital expression of citizen and collaborative media. We’ve arrived at a tipping point. A new definition of democratic media is emerging in our society.
- Dale Peskin, Managing Director of iFOCOS which sponsors the annual We Media conference
To read the full article and survey results from iFOCOS, click here.
“71% of the 16-34 year olds have participated in a blogging activity. The 16-34’s are three times more likely (25%) than those 35-49 to manage and/or write their own blog.”
This, according to the latest study from Universal McCAnn and published by the Center for Media Research: “The New ‘Digital Divide’, How the New Generation of Digital Consumers are Transforming Mass Communication.”
The study looks at interactive usage among various age groups, and finds that younger, more tech-savvy Internet users are using and participating in new forms of media and social networking, including blogging, instant messaging and file sharing, at a much higher rate than those age 34 and older.
David Cohen EVP, U.S. Director of Digital Communications stated “No longer can we simply broadcast our messages to a mass audience and hope that our standard metrics of reach and frequency will guarantee success. Accountable engagement innovation is the battlefield of the 21st century.”
With your blogs, you have made even researchers and social scientists take notice of how social networking and social media tools are changing communication and its effect on everything from trends to market share. Way to go, bloggers!
Today is International Blog Day.
[International Blog Day] is a day in which we celebrate our right to express ourselves online, and help each other to be heard above the din of spin and bad news… and in some places, help people to be heard despite efforts by governments, politicians or companies to silence independent speech online. - Rebecca MacKinnon, Global Voices
Take a moment to think about how blogging has changed your life. Do you remember the very first day you blogged? Go back and read your first entry and reflect on how you felt posting your ideas for the world to read. What ways have you changed as a writer? Do you feel the power and responsibility you have as a citizen journalist?
Every day, new bloggers begin their online journey, and blogging is such an important representation for the complete pictures of the news. Please take a moment today to introduce a non-blogger (especially somebody completely different from you) to your world and empower them to express themselves through your medium in celebration of International Blog Day.
We, at BlogBurst, are constantly amazed and inspired by the incredible research, journalism, and stories that lead to blog articles from around the world. We think what you do is very important, and we’re excited whenever we can convince a publishing partner to include blog coverage in their sites.
Thank you again for allowing us to help drive exposure to your work.
Here at BlogBurst, we focus a lot on the differences between traditional mainstream media and bloggers. We also focus on how to unite them for the benefit of both parties. We don’t think about government censorship - or accusations thereof, but according to a story by AP today - and the buzz in the blogosphere- Kentucky state rep. Kathy Stein (D-Lexington) is introducing legislation to halt efforts by the state’s Governor Ernie Fletcher to selectively block access to blogs and certain web sites.
Gov. Fletcher’s attempts to limit free access to certain blogs comes on the heels of his indictment for corruption, blogged about by Kentucky political blogger Mark Nickolas of bluegrassreport.org.
State employees were unable to access the blog after Nickolas’s posts on the indictment. Coincidence? Mark doesn’t think so. He is suing for his right to freedom of speech.
Looking on the brite side, the governor’s alleged actions demonstrate how influential blogs have become in mainstream society. And we’re just getting started…
Tucson Citizen reports today that heated commentary on the political blog Protein Wisdom has lead to the resignation of a University of Arizona professor. Deborah Frisch, 44-year-old adjunct instructor of four years at UA made questionable comments on the blog by Colorado resident Jeff Goldstein that many believe were out of context and disturbing. The storm of response and reaction did not end with her resignation. See citizen journalism and open thought in action, as readers, including Goldstein, comment on the story right on the TC’s web site.
In a world where main stream/traditional media and blogging are mixing together more and more, we want to ask the bloggers out there, when can a poster/commenter go too far? And, should a blogger be accountable for comments made on his/her site?
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