Bloggers versus Journalists

Got a pretty full week unfolding with new project work and some month-end deliverables. Just got time for a quick post now, and wanted to share this one from Pat Phelan.

We follow each other's blogs as best we can, and his latest post touches on a topic that's near and dear to my heart. It's an ongoing item for me, and is a great read on the fine line between bloggers and journalists. So much territory to explore here, and the comment thread brings many of these sub-issues to light.

I have enough trouble clarifying to people that blogging is not what I do, but like journalists, analysts are a different breed when it comes to getting your ideas across. For both breeds, there's an inherent expectation that your work is supported by the things that give it legitimacy - accuracy, validation, objectivity, professionalism, etc. It's just so hard to pin this on bloggers whose vocation is something else - software developer, product manager, PR, entrepreneur, investor, etc. Of course there are loads of people in these spaces whose blogs set the standard for everyone else - but those hallmarks are not necessarily expected in their line of work. Some do, and some don't. And to be fair, that's also true for my tribe - journalists too, of course!

So, you don't always know what to expect there, unless you really know the blogger as an individual. That's easy to do within your inner circle, but it sure gets a lot tougher to do when trolling the broader blogosphere. Plenty of diamonds in the rough out there, but it takes effort to find them.

I'll leave it at that for now - too many ideas to riff off of, and I got things to do - as do you, for sure. The main thing is to draw attention to Pat's post - and his blog - and by all means, join the conversation.


Technorati tags: Pat Phelan, Jon Arnold, blogging