Seth,
Thanks for mentioning my site in such illustrious company. There are
certainly many thousands of site better than mine to use as an
example ;-)
I have been so busy recently that I haven't (yet) got round to
responding to the article that prompted this thread. I did skim the
article when it was first linked to by Dave and got a pretty poor
impression of the journalist. He seemed to be saying that if it
weren't for 'proper' journalists webloggers wouldn't have anything to
write about and that all we'd be is a sad bunch of people talking
about nothing. I guess we're taking about professional journalists
at the moment ;-)
In any event, much water has passed under the bridge since that
article and my initial frustration at the tenet of the article has
subsided to the extent that I can't really be bothered to find the
time to write a rebuttal. Besides, others much more articulate than
I have pitched in on their own weblogs.
There was one quote that I did agree with towards the end of the
article and which basically said that weblog(ger)s have personality.
I think that is the crucial issue. One of the main reasons that I
read weblogs is because I find the ones I visit regularly to be
brimming with personality, poignancy, provocation, passion,
professionalism, and last, but by no mean least, pet photos ;-) But
enough of the alliteration. I guess what I like most about weblogs
is the community they engender.
I imagine in the UK, and Scotland, in particular, there is general
bemusement about weblogging in terms of keeping online journals and
documenting your life in public. For instance, my family think I'm
strange for maintaining Duncan's Jotter. I think the bemusement is
rooted in the fact that the Brits are rather reserved by nature -
certainly in comparison to Americans. But that's another story...
I'd just like to finish by saying thanks for writing Truer Words Seth.
Duncan
