Last week, I was interviewed by Rob Wessman, who’s in town for a conference of high school journalism teachers. His story came out today.
Check out my new glamour shot.
ÒBlogs scare the living daylights out of most journalists,Ó declares Cyrus Farivar, a Bay Area freelance journalist and blogger. ÒBlogs are constantly making fun of the media, saying that the media is biased one way or another.Ó
Mike Warren, News Editor of the San Francisco office of the Associated Press, says that for that reason, AP writers would not be encouraged to keep blogs.
ÒIÕd say the best use of blogs is consultative,Ó he explains, Òbut it probably wouldnÕt be appropriate (for an objective journalist) to maintain regular weblogs.Ó
Meanwhile, bloggers feel no obligation to be objective. They take an ideological position and direct their blog accordingly. As Farivar says, ÒItÕs important to know where their biases are and be aware of them.Ó Whether those biases are acceptable depends entirely on the readers of the blog.
Their own biases notwithstanding, bloggers have emerged as vicious media critics. They check details of traditional news stories voraciously and pounce on any errors in reporting that place their ideologies in danger.
Take the Dan Rather story, for instance. During the 2004 presidential campaign, CBS aired a story based on documents discrediting President BushÕs status in the Texas Air National Guard. Bloggers immediately reacted and questioned the authenticity of the documents. After an investigation, CBS retracted the story and Rather apologized.
ÒThe principles of good journalism remain: tell the truth, check sources, fact check,Ó Farivar says. ÒThe media hasnÕt been able to do that on their own.Ó
So why do writers insist on keeping a blog? Farivar thinks the motivation lies in the desire to be heard and recognized for their writing. Bloggers revel in finding and reporting a story first. ÒMany journalists have been one-upped by bloggers.Ó Being able to catch an established media organization in an error or to get to a story first makes blogging a thrill.
