meekia

Latching on to the Long Tail

Picture courtesy of Project Maya


It's fascinating how academics in media communication studies have latched on to recent blogging trends, while mainstream media organizations continue to breathe dust, lumber behind and risk irrelevance.

There is an enlightened minority though, that are jumping on the bandwagon.

Courtesy of Mrbrown.com, I found out that The Observer has started its own blog. Here's what the online editor of this new part of the blogosphere had to say.

"The blog has been officially live for a whole 36 hours now and so far we are quite pleased with the response. Some kind people have said nice things about us. Naturally, some people are sceptical. The most common reservation seems to be that we are in bad faith - that this is not a real blog but rather a cyncial (and/or misguided) piece of corporate brand extension.

What can we say? (Somehow I think "er..no it's not, please trust us" isn't going to do the trick. Although, "please give us a chance, read the blog for a bit and decide later whether or not we are being straight with you," might help.

But on the question of what exactly is a blog, and more pertinently, whether or not an 'old media' institution is necessarily precluded from having one, I, as the Observer's online editor, have a view:

* Grabs online editor's hat, pulls it firmly onto head, adjusts it at a rakish angle. *"

--- Continue reading what the humble, rakish-angled-hat-wearing-one has to say



Meanwhile, if the politics between mainstream journalism, monolithic media juggernauts, and personal blogs don't interest you one bit, here's a blog on the NBA scene that has garnered widespread respect from hoop fans around the world.

I don't think Lang (the chief author of the site) has ever outrightly declared The Links an actual blog though...

Either that, or I might've missed that particular update in which he did. Anyway, it doesn't matter at all, what, or how Lang (or anyone else for that matter) labels the quirky, fun and insightful information he brings to NBA fans as a sportswriter for Sports Illustrated online and the SLAM hoop mag.

Call it a Blog. Call it The Links. The Long Tail. The Browntown. The Sammyboy Quickie. Whatever.

JUST BRING IT TO US, The Mouse-Browse Generation, FAST, and drenched in entertaining jazz.

posted by audaciousjoy @ 1:30 PM