February 15, 2005
On the false triumphalism of blogmobs
by Liza Sabater
Anil Dash: Non-Blogger Fired For Blogging!
And about Eason Jordan: More myopic blogger triumphalism. Dear political bloggers, most people, even in the blogosphere, have never heard of the whole kerfuffle, let alone the one surrounding Jeff Gannon. This is inside-baseball cliquishness at its worst. I'm not saying these guys didn't screw up, I'm saying that you didn't win. It won't temper we liberals who control the media to be more moderate, and it won't keep the White House from trying to spin the media. Net effect? Lots of negatives, few positives.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but you're hurting us. You're hurting all weblogs.
Posted by Liza Sabater in Blogs, Journalism, Media, Memes, Sidelinks
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Say it loud, say it proud!
For the most part, I agree. I mean, I agree that no one's been fired for blogging. In the case of Eason Jordan, perhaps the off-the-record ethos of Davos should have been respected to begin with. I can't really say.
In the Gannon situation, however, there's a real story there that goes beyond the personal life of a pseudo-reporter. The fact that the media doesn't cover it doesn't make it less so.
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Comment by: Liza Sabater at February 15, 2005 11:48 AM
Pat,
I agree with you 100%. Eason's situation was a bloglynching if there ever was. Especially given that Davos was always meant to be a forum for off-the-record comments by the movers and shakers of the world. Of course, it's a bit polyannaish to believe that in a room with more than 200 people, everybody is going to respect the "no quotes" policy. Maybe in a room full of Europeans but in a room full of Americans? I don't think so.
The Gannon/Guckert story is real and if it had not been for the blogs, none of the major news outlets would have picked up on it.
The main point Anil is making is that especially in the Davos case, it's not a victory when you silence someone for all the wrong reasons. And it hurts all bloggers, regardless of their political agenda.
I think this is particularly important when reporters in Iraq are saying --through their blogs-- that, yes indeed, they are moving targets for the US Army.
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Comment by: pat at February 15, 2005 11:06 AM