A Blog’s A Blog
Blogging has tipped the point. Exponentially. There are now personal blogs, CEO blogs, market blogs, pet blogs, call-girl blogs, blogs on blogging, blogs about how not to blog, blogs on blogs on blogs. There are even those that claim to know and set the rules to what a blog should be. It it’s a business blog it should be this way, if you are writing about your family it should be this way, if you are a celebrity news anchor it should be this way.
I’ve been around in the blogosphere since the beginning. I’ve watched it evolve and grow from being something that everyone gawked at. Those of us that care deeply about it have spent a lot of time just marketing and selling the idea of blogging. Blog is even a word in the dictionary now. On top of that it’s no longer just in the dictionary, it’s the number one word of the year.
To that tune, we’ve obviously got a lot of interest and a whole lot of people who think that they should define what a blog is and what it should be. To those people, I think you have an interest that is contrary to the entire movement itself. Blogging is popular because there is no standard. It’s an open window into someones head. It’s the visceral response to a daily observation. It’s a pointed opinion on a unique daily life. There is no “blog standard”, because that’s exactly what a blog isn’t. A standard. And that’s where it’s freedom, individuality, ubiquity, and pervasiveness originate.
Lets leave the blogging to the people that want to share ideas, not control them. Standards and control will only destroy the candid nature of blogs wether they are personal, community, or corporate.
As Seth Godin said:
“Here’s the problem. Blogs work when they are based on:
Candor
Urgency
Timeliness
Pithiness and
Controversy
(maybe Utility if you want six).”
