So Personal Blogging is Dead. They’ve been saying that for a while now. In fact, when I started blogging in 2005 they were saying it. Back then, I was part of a torrent of Christian writers who flooded the e-waves with their Blogspot and WordPress sites, all chatty, connected and jockeying for position. Now, four years later, many of my original blogging friends have bitten the dust, leaving a vast graveyard of blogs.
So is personal blogging really dead? From the original Wired article:
Thinking about launching your own blog? Here’s some friendly advice: Don’t. And if you’ve already got one, pull the plug.
Writing a weblog today isn’t the bright idea it was four years ago. The blogosphere, once a freshwater oasis of folksy self-expression and clever thought, has been flooded by a tsunami of paid bilge. Cut-rate journalists and underground marketing campaigns now drown out the authentic voices of amateur wordsmiths. It’s almost impossible to get noticed, except by hecklers. And why bother? The time it takes to craft sharp, witty blog prose is better spent expressing yourself on Flickr, Facebook, or Twitter.
The article notes that the top blogs in the world are written by teams of people, not individuals. In this way, more content can pass more rapidly through more hands. Assemble enough of these team blogs — especially when they’re comprised of industry insiders, celebrities, published authors, and people in-the-know — and the personal blogger is destined to become a digital dodo.
Anyway, it’s caused me to reflect on my own blogging habits. Do I eschew the personal blog in favor of Technorati’s top dawgs? And am I wasting my time posting 3 or 4 times a week if my readership will inevitably migrate elsewhere?
Upon reflection, probably a third of my blogging time is spent reading personal blogs. Sure, some of the persons running those blogs are professionals, published authors, educators, accomplished craftsmen, or corporate bigwigs. But not all of them. The difference, for me, is whether the blog is about the author or the reader. The “life-streaming” phenomena — like the Twitter real-time ticker — has replaced the blog for lots of folks. But, for the most part, its focus is on the author — where they’re going, what they’re doing, how they’re feeling, etc. I suppose some people are interesting and powerful enough that personal details of their life allure large groups of readers. Personally, I don’t have the time for it. And if that’s the kind of “personal blogging” that is dying, good riddance.
The personal blogs I gravitate towards are the ones that address interesting subjects, that are thoughtful, that are creative, that are well-written, that pique discussions, that exude professionalism, that challenge my thinking, that make me laugh, that give me a heads-up, that keep me informed, that are reliable, that start a conversation rather than a monologue. And frankly, there’s lots of personal blogs that still do this.
Measuring up to the Technorati Top Ten and the proliferation of team blogs is a near impossibility for the average amateur blogger. But does this mean we should abandon ship? And is this our objective? Unless you’re famous or have oodles of friends, building readership is still about content. And producing quality content is as accessible to the personal blogger as to the team blogger.
Then as to the beneficience of maintaining my own personal blog, if you’ve read this far, I guess it’s worth it.
There ought to be a Godwin’s Law Corrollary for the “is dead” crowd. First one to declare death, loses.
Microsoft isn’t dead.
Paul still isn’t dead.
God certainly isn’t dead.
But the quickest route to notoriety for the narrow-minded pseudointellectual is to declare something very much alive to be dead.
There also ought to be a sub-clause that includes promoters of the next “Killer App.”
Because they are giving new, banal meaning to the phrase “Death, where is thy sting?”
Right on, Mike. Right on. I would say that, in an average month, I actually gather more solid and useful news, analysis and information from verified personal blogs than I ever have in the previous decades of network news combined.
I’m with you, my free willing…er…free wheeling friend.
I don’t read professional blogs and I don’t twitter.
Who are these people? Exactly as Xdpaul described.
Like the only possible goal for a blog is to reach a millenium of people? Yeah, right.
Your blog is insightful and interesting, a daily checkpoint for me.
Twitter makes me wonder . . . why?
The personal blogs I visit are tied to writing in some manner, and the professionals’ blogs I consult offer a person and not just platitudes. I’ve made a lot of friends I’ve never met through this medium. It can get tedious, but it’s valuable.
There are team/corporate blogs I read because I find value in the aggregation of information. In America you need sifting skills to eliminate the corporate junk and find the gems.
The blogs I enjoy most, though, are the personal blogs that offer an interesting voice and original thought based on their own life and experiences.
Following Xdpaul’s post above, I’d like to say that the dearth of exagerated headlines and slogans like “____ is dead” and “Bush is Hitler” leads us to the death of meaning, but then I’d be guilty as well.
I think the people who want to propound that personal blogs are dead are the people who feel threatened by personal blogs. Granted, the communities seem to have sliced into personal blogs, but I don’t see them dying as long as there are people who want to express an opinion that runs counter to the party line, what ever party that might be.
Becky
I completely agree with Becky so I can’t really add to that topic.
I do think your good riddance comment is interesting though. Kind of a condemning/judgmental statement when it’s truly a matter of preference. To each his own. Know what I mean, dude?
And you may not like Twitter either but you might be surprised at how that might be able to assist in a PR sense. I opened my account to see what it was all about. I’ve found organizations and people whose work I want to follow. I get real time updates on their work. I find this fascinating. It’s faster than email. I follow International Justice Mission’s feeds for this reason. And if a writer I enjoy wants to send out a rather personal statement about their everyday activities, that are often hilarious or thought provoking, it makes me as the consumer want to purchase more of what the person writes. It’s a tool that, used correctly, can be enormously helpful to any number of folks whether you’re a writer, pastor, small business person or just like to trade witty quips with your friends.
All in all what I’m trying to say is, lighten up man.
When someone starts calling me “dude,” I’m in trouble…
I don’t doubt that Twitter can serve a good purpose. But like most technological trends, it has a downside. For the majority of people that I see using it, the communique seems, uh, kinda trivial. Okay, if it involves business, then I’ll concede Twittering. But unless we’re talking about Jesus Christ, what purpose does it serve to follow the everyday activities of anyone? To me, it’s rather voyeuristic.
Anyway, I’ll make a deal with you, E. I’ll “lighten up” on the technological diatribes… until I talk about them again. K?
BTW: I’m in my jammies, drinking coffee, preparing to crank out a chapter of my WIP and read some proofs for Coach’s Midnight Diner. 😉
I was in quite a mood when I wrote that, wasn’t I? Mostly just enjoying giving you a hard time as I seem to agree with you more often than not.
I do understand what you’re saying. I do. And I can think of at least one person I’m quite tempted to remove from my list as their little posts drive me nuts. But I’ve learned about technology, industry related items, upcoming books and events, breaking news, etc., etc. more than anything. I actually appreciate it now that I have an account.
But in spite of giving you a hard time, I do see some merit in what you’re saying. I just happen to think it’s like a lot of other things in the world. Pluses and minuses.