“Blogging is only as good as you make it”
This statement couldn’t me more true, today when I find a truly engaging and interesting news story you know what format it’s in? a BLOG. A blog with personal insight and knowledge.
The reporters of the world all have knowledge of what they’re covering but they don’t share that knowledge with the readers in a print or broadcast form, with blogs they should be able to tell us the ‘truth’ of the matters related to the story, not just what their sources say is the truth. Share the knowledge!
This isn’t to say that filters and editing is bad, just that transparency is a very positive thing, especially since the web has democratized and freed information storage and retrieval.
“It isn’t the journalism of your cranky old city editor or your sainted j-school prof. Neither of those old farts would approve of blogging in any form, even though blogging is now part of the legitimate media mix.”
I quote this only because I have first hand knowledge of the way journalism is now being taught. And granted my experiences may not reflect that of the other students who aren’t as knowledgeable about the world surrounding the Internet, but nonetheless…
I know of several journalism professors who embrace blogs (and blog themselves), and many of the current classes at the Missouri School of Journalism require students to blog on a weekly basis, however what is often required is a reflection post on the work they did this week.
This could be taken as great practice for the young journalist, or a way to show how important it is to control what you say and how you say it. There are plenty of ‘cranky old city editors’ around in the real world, and in the Jschool world, and those are the people I think we really need to be careful about. They are the ones who wouldn’t trust a blog, wouldn’t trust a person’s opinions, and think grammar is the end-all be-all of “good news”.
That just isn’t the case anymore. Period.
Blogging is where journalists need to be writing and peddling their wares. The traditional newspaper is old news, and so is the traditional newspaper web site.
Content doesn’t have to free, but it does have to open and accessible.
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