Matt Rosenberg, one of the Seattle Times consistently interesting and worthwhile guest columnists, writes about the capture of Saddam Hussein and gives a nod to the blogosphere:
Something more powerful than terrorist attacks and resistance was under way there even before Saddam's dramatic capture. It is reflected partly by a growing cadre of passionate, pro-democracy Iraqis providing firsthand reporting, commentary and pointed media criticism on their own Internet "Web log" sites, or "blogs."Rosenberg goes on to mention Iraqi bloggers Zeyad and Alaa, along with the American bloggers who did the most to help publicize them: Jeff Jarvis and Glenn Reynolds.
Now more than ever, the fresh voices of Iraqi bloggers will be an invaluable counterweight to traditional media coverage. In the weeks and months to come, turn to them for crucial, first-person insights on this unfolding, and uplifting, birth of a democracy.I'm not too modest to add that the fresh voices of American bloggers can also be an invaluable counterweight to tradtional American media coverage of American politics. Posted by Stefan Sharkansky at December 17, 2003 02:26 PM
"I'm not too modest to add that the fresh voices of American bloggers can also be an invaluable counterweight to traditional American media coverage of American politics."
I vociferously second the motion. Particularly when 'traditional American media coverage' means NON-coverage, equivalent to suppressing the news, as the major media treated the December 10 Baghdad demonstration against terrorism and selective media. Were it not for the bloggers, we'd have been ignorant of it.
And see Chris Muir's superb cartoon (click back to the December 11 issue) showing why we need bloggers, at http://www.daybydaycartoon.com/Default.aspx
Yesterday, the big media found a nice demonstration AGAINST the Americans, and filled our TV with it for half an hour. Biased? Nah...
Posted by: Insufficiently Sensitive on December 17, 2003 02:48 PMAbsolutely. I get most, if not all, of my news from the 'sphere.
And in all honesty, I learn more while debating the intelligent liberals who post in the forums of conservative blogs than I'd EVER learn from our lazy media.
Trolls, no. But decent-minded liberals help me keep things in perspective. Even if they're wrong. :)
I just read a recent issue of PC magazine in which Dvorak opines that blogs are on the way out because bloggers are quitting (too much work to do a blog for free and many have only a few readers). He also thinks corporate interests are taking over the blogosphere, starting fake blogs in order to sell stuff. Doesn't seem to be a fair representation of the blogosphere I inhabit, as characterized by the Shark Blog and the bloggers you mention in this posting and on your blog roll. I rely on them for tips to worthwhile articles on the net (and in the case of the Shark Blog, for keeping tabs on our local rags). I know it must take a lot of time to keep one up though, so thanks Shark for the effort.
Posted by: Wilinsky on December 19, 2003 01:39 PM