MediaVidea

Bloggers as credentialed journalists

The debate over whether bloggers are journalists is not going to be silenced any time soon.

The blogosphere is maturing. However, personal publishing, the modern foundation for professional writers and reporters is never going to cease.

The quest for balanced, useful and informed opinion is successful when bloggers choose to be topical, objective and throw opinions after careful consideration.

I can cite examples of bloggers being taken seriously by the mainstream media and business in general:

1. Matthew Lee, the only blogger at the United Nations with media credentials. The New York Times writes that Mr. Lee is entitled to a free office space and has access to briefings and press conferences.

2. The New York Times writes that the Democratic Party and the Republican Party allowed bloggers into their 2004 conventions.

3. Gaming, software and gadget companies regularly send new products to prominent bloggers for review. Although, the sector is so informal that it makes me hard to judge whether a review is biased.

One thing that jars me is the absence of bloggers from press conferences and company analysts meets.

Reason: people fear that they cannot ‘control’ the information as far as bloggers are concerned.

Moreover, proper standards about disclosure is one of the things that the blogosphere has to see more of if the best bloggers among us are to get equal place along with fellow journalists in the eyes of general public and business.

It is one of the goals of bloggers who use blogs as springboard for their careers that one day they are able to rise above the din of all that self-important noise masquerading as ‘important’ opinion.

We will have to work hard for that to happen.

Labels: blogging

posted by Pramit Singh @ 4:55 PM