The death of blogging
Biggest news story of the year Twittered away
It’s official, blogging is dead. Or at least it has reached the end of any useful life as far as providing lively forums for discussion of important issues. And I blame Twitter.
Look at the current ‘Utegate/OzCar/Emailgate/Grechgate’ affair that looks like bringing about the demise of Opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull. This is by far the biggest political story of the year but it has been dismissed by many well known blogs and blog commenters as mundane and boring and hardly worth a mention.
Yet I’ve noticed many of those same people following every twist & turn of this fascinating, bizarre and unfolding saga on Twitter - in their typical smart arse (and very unfunny) 140-character sound bytes.
And it’s as boring as all hell. The thing about Twitter is it’s not about analysis & debate, it’s not even about communication and so-called ’social networking’. It’s about everyone trying to be funny. Strangely though, I’m still waiting to read a genuinely funny Tweet. And I know I’ll never read a serious one.
Twitter has destroyed people’s desire to put thought-through commentary together as they do (or were doing) on blogs. And the really bad news is this: It’s going to get a lot worse.
Contact: ray@grevilleagardens.com
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Just as I was getting in to this whole blog thingy, it is dead!!
Twitter just looks like public SMS.
I have a feeling that at least some people are going to get sick of Twitter, as they have of Facebook, and will come back to blogs and blogging – if there’s any left.
You blame twitter? You’re kidding, right?
Australian’s capacity for public debate died many, many years ago… around the same time as Ray Martin began polluting our TV screens with his nightly half hour of vomit, A Current Affair.
Since then, we’ve moved on to include the superb journalistic talents of Today Tonight, and the equally high quality morning programming from Today, and Sunrise.
Who needs any more than that? If it came from Koshie then it must true, and all I need to know!
Both of these shows rate very highly – millions of people watch it… daily! On the other hand, shows like SBS World News, ABC News Breakfast, and The 7:30 report, have much lower ratings. Why? People generally aren’t interested in world news, debate, or hearing other perspectives from people smarter than themselves. People either want it light and fluffy, or to hear gossip about someone else’s misfortunes. They want to be entertained.
You just have to watch the nightly news (if you can call it that) on any commercial channel. As a nation, we’ve become so indifferent to anything that isn’t going on in our own backyard that 10-15 minutes is about all we can handle before needing to hear what’s happening in the AFL.
We’re interested in politics only long enough to know how much we’ll get. If there’s something in it for us, we show interest and say it’s a good decision calling it a ‘Stimulus’, and ‘for the country’, if not, it’s a ‘handout’ and declare we’ve become a welfare state supporting the bludgers. Soon after, we’ll see a reporter on A Current Affair harassing someone less fortunate, and pass it off as legitimate news.
Just leave Australia, even for the briefest moment, and you’ll see that critical thought, and a real interest in real issues, is alive and kicking. It’s just a shame so many of us [Australians] don’t value that right it in the same way that other cultures do.
Twitter is for Twits!
Let’s keep blogging and linking to sites with teeth!
Blogging’s not dead – a couple of months ago things were quiet on the blogs and then there was movement. Me personally sometimes I’m very prolific other times I have a break – nothing intentional it’s just whether or not I feel like writing.
Twitter is an easier way to get something out there though. It’s like the difference between commenting on a blog and taking the time out to write a blog, include links etc.
I like the Pevva’s public SMS description of Twitter.
Good post Paul. Couldn’t do that on Twitter.
I’m with Mario. Paul, that was the thing that made blogging such a great alternative to mainstream media – it’s real people without agendas (or mostly without agendas).
I can’t see Twitter dying off just yet, in fact I think it’s probably got a few more variations and a bit more evolvement to do.
Wah, it’s “easier” for sure, but I reckon 99% of tweets are not worth saying. And the other thing is, it’s breaking issues up before they get properly aired.
Yes, Pevva’s SMS description is spot on.
Twitter is like Facebook, with comments like, “I am so tired”, “I got pissed last night”.
Well, who cares?
Blogs on the other hand give us information, real information not just chit chat.
Blogs on the other hand give us information, real information not just chit chat.
You must read different blogs to me.
I must
Have a look at mine
http://www.coldstreamau.blogspot.com
I think they give us humour, Dave. That’s the biggest & best thing about personal blogs – ordinary folk saying very funny things, often not meaning to!
A good blog post can take on a life of its own, whereas a ‘good’ Tweet (if there is such a thing) mutates and eventually (well quickly) gets buried as the twitterers move on to the next ‘riveting’ thing to take their attention, like “what I’m cooking for dinner”.
Twitter is turning its users into Attention Deficit Disorder sufferers.
Considering you don’t use twitter Ray, I question your depth of understanding of it. The power of twitter is the way you can follow whoever you choose and connect to them, and also gain their insights into things.
As an example, by following people in fields that you are interested in you gain exposure to things that aren’t necessarily on your radar. A great example of this is the ABC’s Mark Colvin, who shares news and opinion pieces from all over the world, from sites that you might never think to look at because he knows the journos who have written the piece.
So it’s not just pithy one liners, it is a great source of information, filtered by people who’s judgement you trust. If a person tweets nothing but nonsense then you simply unfollow them and instantly improve the signal to noise ratio.
Twitter is really nothing like facebook, it’s not for catching up with people you lost touch with years ago, it’s for finding new people and new sources of information, and it does that very well.
That’s not my point, Dave, of course Twitter has good uses.
But I don’t have to drink poison to know it will kill me and what I’m talking about is how many previous prolific blog writers & commenters have opted to direct that energy into Tweets rather than into coherent pieces & commentary on blogs.
I must admit I dont use Twitter. Can Twitter users answer this question?
“Can all of the ABOVE be done on twitter? and how?”
Well even though I’m a ‘non-Twitterer’, Mario, I think I can answer it.
The difference with Twitter is that it’s like being in a room with 500 people who are talking about a whole lot of different issues and (mostly) trivia and trying to jump from one to the other. There is no thread to the conversation.
Nothing wrong with meaningless chit-chat at a party, in fact it’s part of the fun (and it might lead to, er, bigger things), butTwitter’s like a party of drunks only they’re not able to see & touch each other, or get drunk!
So, Ray, blogging gives you the touchy feeling?
LOL
Sorry Mario, I just found one of your comments in ’spam’ – it’s up now.
So, Ray, blogging gives you the touchy feeling?
No Mario, if I say I don’t like apples that doesn’t mean I like oranges. The correct ‘opposite’ to my party room analogy on Twitter is that parties give me that “touchy feeling”.
That’s the point that you miss Ray, the number of people in the room is entirely up to you. If you only want to follow ten people, that’s just fine.
Yes, yes, I understand that, Dave. I haven’t missed your point but you’ve missed mine.
I just joined twitter
Now what do i do?
Nice knowing you, Mario.
I will never leave bloggggging
Check out my blog at http://www.coldstreamau.blogspot.com
to see why
Find people to follow. Then look through who they follow to see if there’s anyone else there that interests you, build your information network.
For starters I’d recommend ABC journos @colvinius @LEIGHSALES @michaelturtle and @abcnews
Also @annabelcrabb from the Sydney Morning Herald and @bernardkeane from Crikey.
I’m @dfg77
Good advice, Dave. Pity most Twitterers don’t take it.
Btw Mario, I’ve read your blog and tried to comment but then I noticed you’re on blogger and it only accepts google accounts. I find the blogger format deters people from commenting, have you considered switching to WordPress? Way to go. You can import your whole blog in minutes and put in a re-direct. Easy.
Ray
E mail me any comments and I will add them.
I did not like WordPress and restricted my http://www.coldstreamau.blogspot.com to followers etc.
BTW I cant get onto “South of the Boarder” site. Any idead?
No. Contact Greg Naylor maybe?
Tried
No success
I’m not really familiar with it, Mario. I’ve only noticed Greg refer to it but, like you say, the link’s broken.
The Dreamhost server carrying ‘South of the Border’ died yesterday at 10.00 am and I am still trying to find out why. It will return at the earliestt opportunity.
I find twitter to be most useful in following specific sources as Dave has discussed. You are probably unaware that my Twitter account tweets the publishing of posts from all of the North East Bloggers posts with a tiny url that links directly to your site.
Twitter has nothing to do with the demise of blogging. I suggest the blogs you may be following have become stale with their authors getting tired. In recent months, you have canned Dave and Kieran for neglecting their blogs in favour of twitter. The fact is, when they post to their resprctive blogs, their posts have been brilliantly crafted. So, people use the different media for different purposes.
Ray, if you want your faith in blogging revived, look at the Poll Bludger. New poll posted yesterday and over 1700 posts now. It’s funny, informed, informative and growing practically exponentially.
Hang in there.
I’m aware of Poll Bludger and other similar sites, Rox. But to me they’re only one step removed from mainstream media and not what real blogging is about.
I’m talking about what the ‘ordinary folk’ are doing and, sadly, they’re twittering.
Greg, your comment was in “pending” because you mispelt your name, I think.
Anyway, I haven’t “canned” anyone and I’m not denying Twitter has uses. It’s a useful vehicle. So is a Commodore but if you use the Commodore for doing burnouts, donuts & hooning more than as a means of transport … it’s not so useful.
And if D & K occasionally write “brilliantly crafted” blog posts it just reinforces that that’s what they do best.
I wonder if blogs have suffered because there are so many of them? There are lots I have bookmarked, and they’re all good, but keeping up with them all was getting like a second job and when you keep finding more and more that you like, it just gets harder.
The other thing I suppose it that unlike a forum you can’t start your own topic, even if there’s something you’d like to discuss. I don’t have time to run a blog, I already moderate 2 forums and God know how many I’ve joined.
For instance Ray, I found out last night that a friend of mine has a flatmate who hates sandwiches to the extent that she’ll ring up people whose place she’s going to to warn them that she can’t eat them. I’ve been dying to tell someone about that.
One thing you said was about humour, and I think you’re right. I only like funny ones, or blogs run by people with a GSOH, as they say in the personals.
Napoleon Hill believed that we would all be communicating with thought by now and it has occurred to me as I have used Twitter that it is like what it would be like if we had access to everyone’s thoughts.
It would be overwhelming so we would “connect” or follow only those people’s thoughts that we cared about. Then, we can’t be interrupted with their thoughts when ever they think, so we’d save them up to experience later, and then just skim over them without paying much attention.
I think we will see Twitter fall from favour before blogging does. Hhhmm, good one, I might tweet that now.
Rox, there ARE too many blogs, but the quantity hasn’t affected the quality. What I’m saying is that a lot of those quality blog authors (and a lot of their ‘quality’ commenters) have been distracted by Twitter, which they’re using as an alternative to discussing issues.
As for forums v blogs, I started Alpine Opinion as a ‘community forum’ for this area where anyone could join and start a topic. It went alright but others were reluctant to start topics and preferred just to comment on the ones I raised. So I changed it to a blog and widened the scope. Then it took off to the point where it is now in the Top Ten blogs in the country!!! (I made that last bit up).
I like that friend of yours and the sandwich thing. I like her style.
Don, I think people are making a lot of it up. And it’s not so much their “thoughts” they’re tweeting but their observations.
“I like that friend of yours and the sandwich thing. I like her style.”
I think she’s a pain in the arse Ray, but there you go.
Oh yeah, she’s a “pain” but the audacity of doing that makes her funny.
I’d love to call some, er, relatives I know in advance and say, “For Christ’s sake don’t serve another bloody roast chicken you just purchased from the supermarket. Ever heard of cooking?”, but I don’t have the guts.
Would you like to meet the sandwich lady?
I hope that blogging isn’t dying, I intend on making a big comeback and get back into the days of posting at least 3/4 times a week.
As someone who doesn’t tweet, I have to say I understand the advantage of soundbites but I prefer to read more in depth pieces of writing. They both have their uses. Sometimes the thought of writing a blog post seems like too much work and then a soundbite would be a better way to touch base and express an opinion that you don’t need to back up with paragraphs of arguments, but on the other hand, blogs are a great way to spread information and help understanding of others.
Provided the ‘bites’ are coherent & relevant, LuLi. I haven’t seen many tweets that were worth the effort of texting in. It has its uses, granted, but most people seem to be using it to be stupid.
It’s getting worse folks. The blogs that once were great sit almost idle, while their authors and key commenters mutate further & further into a twitterish mish-mash of meaningless tweets.
Will it end? Will they eventually come back? And can they come back before the deadly drug of Twitter destroys their brains?
I hold grave fears for the future of good blogging and worst of all … it’s let the nutso, right wing idiots (who can’t work out how to Twitter) reclaim the higher blogging ground.
Deserted. We stand deserted by those who would fight and defend us.
It’s almost over.
Ray do you ever have a general comments page. If you did the NSW libs deserve a rollicking.
So does the NSW Labor Party Govt. But then again, is anyone not corrupt and/or bent in NSW?
As for a general comments page, well I’ve tried a “say whatever you like” post but ‘the children’ just saw it as a good opportunity to play up and insult me. They need my guidance.
Add the Tasmanian Lib and Lab party to that. Not much choice here. Thank God for the greens.