I just read the "Every blog has its day" article in Modern Elegance (their website hasn't been updated yet at the time of writing), and I'm rather disappointed. Most of the author's writing was a history of diarists/the internet, and part that was actually about blogging was just a general blurb about "a new voice that can reach millions all over the world". Nothing even about the how the local scene has recently developed.
The "best local bloggers" chosen to be interviewed were actually "the high-profile bloggers"; every single one of the five people - Guże, Immanuel, Sharon, Mark and Toni - are/were involved with the Maltese media or with writing in some way outside of blogging. No mention of the many Maltese bloggers who are "normal" people from all walks of life and who may not have any claim to fame except that they make up our ever-growing bloggosfera.
*sigh*
Well, I have to say I didn't accept to be interviewed by ME. I told them I thought there were many more deserving blogs out there but that if they wanted to take something off my blog I had no objection since it was in the public domain. I haven't really seen what they've done but it doesn't surprise me that they've picked the more "high-profile" bloggers, although I still have to understand what is high profile about us. That is the mainstream media's job or at least what it believes to be its job :)
I'm still not convinced that bloggers need coverage in the mainstream media to be taken seriously. The blogger's audience is right here on the net and it's good writing, updated regularly, which will speak for you. But why don't you try writing an article about the local blogging scene and I'll see if I can find some space for you? ;) I'm leaving you my email here if you want to discuss it.
Posted by: Sharon | June 05, 2005 at 00:17
Exactly my thoughts, MaltaGirl.
To be fair, I haven't read the article yet and thus I'm still waiting for the site to be updated (like most of the interviewees themselves), but I must say I pretty much expected the theme to be tackled in that way and was not surprised at all with the choice of persons. After all, from the first impressions I get of the mag by taking a quick look at its website, it's not the type of magazine that will give a toss about going into detail about blogging or anything remotely related with technology. Its readers probably don't care about it either. They want to know more about fashion and gossip, and that's what they get.
With that said, I agree with you that the choice of interviewees was to be expected and I don't think there's anything wrong in saying that they were clearly chosen only on a basis of popularity/high profile, or at least, because of their involvement/close relationship with the media (not necessarily because they are/were directly involved, but also because they may be enjoying a good rapport.)
Just before anyone attacks me for being jealous because I was not approached by the magazine and my blog was not mentioned in that feature...
I was indeed contacted (like practically every other Maltese blog owner) a week ago by an intern journalist from the The Malta Independent by means of a blog comment for a different feature about Maltese blogs, but I did not reply/provide the requested information because I am not interested in promoting my blog in that manner.
I do not maintain my blog to boost my self-esteem with its high readership (although I don't believe I can say my blog has a high readership.) In fact, I rarely ever check the statistics (and the few statistics that I have available offer very limited information.) Nor do I promote my blog on my sites or in other prominent places. I do not even tell my friends about my blog, although recently a number of them have somehow managed to discover it.
Quite frankly, I am not interested in having my blog read by those who cannot manage to find it strictly by following links in the blogosphere. They may as well keep on reading their newspapers and the other advert-riddled magazines.
Posted by: Kenneth | June 05, 2005 at 02:55
Sharon, I suppose depends what you'd mean by "being taken seriously". My blog is definitely not a serious blog, and not to be taken seriously in any context, lol, and I don't care about whether or not the rest of the world considers it a worthwhile endeavour or not, but there's other bloggers out there who are all about self-promotion and, by extension, blog-promotion. I have a suspicion that in some cases, they are promoting their blogs simply to get themselves more personal recognition rather than because they care about blogs as such. So I guess that because they take themselves so seriously, they want the unwired world to take their blogs seriously.
Anyway, my interest in this article was purely because it's about Maltese blogs, a subject that is dear to me because it's my main "hobby". :-)
Kenneth, I think it's a shame that you didn't participate with regards to the Independent's article. I understand that you don't care about increased readership - neither do I. Like you, I don't tell my friends about my blog, and neither do I actively seek to increase my readership although I know various tricks on how to do so. I didn't even submit my own site to AboutMalta's list, which is why it took months for me to appear on it :-)
But since this is, as I mentioned, a subject dear to my heart, I participated to spread the word about blogging (not about my blog). I would have liked to see your point of view aired since I consider you to be one of the main protagonists in the bloggosfera. Maybe you could have been a "mystery correspondent", lol...
Oh well :-)
Posted by: MaltaGirl | June 05, 2005 at 11:22
Blogger 007 minn wara l-muntanji tal-Mellieħa... lol!
Posted by: Kenneth | June 05, 2005 at 14:01
*cues theme from Mission: Impossible*
Dum, dum, DUMDUM, dum, dum, dumdum...
Posted by: MaltaGirl | June 05, 2005 at 14:06