From The Corner:
For years those of us who defended Matt Drudge against his more unhinged critics would grind our teeth when people would say “Oh you heard that on Drudge” when they really meant “You found the link on Drudge.” Obviously Drudge did real reporting. But as an Ur-blogger much of his stuff was merely links—and that remains the case now. But by calling attention to a wire story he could move it to the top of the media chatter. I remember when Alec Baldwin issued a statement condemning some “Drudge story” when really all Matt did was link to an interview in (I believe) a German magazine.
I predict we’ll hear a similar refrain more and more from the MSM. “Oh, you just heard that on a blog….” This isn’t new (long before the pajamehedeen Krugman was calling Sullivan’s site “too vile to read”), but I think it will get more intense.
No brainer! It simply warrants extreme care in linking directly back to the MSM source (of course with H/T credits).
That’s no big surprise. My roommate already says that when I tell her something she doesn’t like: “Oh, you saw that on some right-wing blog, didn’t you?”
no problem …
“So, you read that on some blooooooggggggg right?”
“No. I read it on a CITIZEN-JOURNALIST’S eJournal.”
I don’t think we have much to worry about now. We are in our own little cyberspace world here. When I mention to relatives and friends that I have a blog and then explain what it is, they think I am a journalist or something. It is funny. I tell them there are 8 million blogs on all kinds of topics. And we really like to talk to each other.
How we will grow will be interesting to see.
Well, yes, Sparkle, there are 8 million or so, but not all are CITIZEN JOURNALISTS. AND IT IS THE CITIZEN JOURNALISTS WHO WILL COME TO RULE THE EARTH !
FEAR THE POWER OF PIE.
Where are these talking blogs of which they speak? By them I am very intrigued, and know more I wish to.
When asked for a comment, Master Yoda grunted thoughtfully and said:
When pie you seek, care you must take. But be not afraid of the Dark Side, for Willis dork he is.”
Smart Willis is. Increasing size of his coin collection wishing to, instruct the cashier of Taco Bell he does:
“Three quarters for change of seventy-five cents give me not. Have instead I wish to dimes six and nickles three.”
“Wait, wait – on second thought, how much are the chalupas?”
Most of my friends prefer their news predigested and shat out for them ahead of time – like CNN and TIME magazine.
They really don’t know what they are missing.
(long before the pajamehedeen Krugman was calling Sullivan’s site “too vile to read”)
But did he say it was gobsmackingly vile?
And anyway, do we really need to know that Andrew smacks his gob? Didn’t his mother at least try to get him to stop?
WHAT?? AS A CITIZEN JOURNALIST I AM ENTITLED TO PIE???
Part of this reminds me of the flap about Rush Limbaugh when he too was accused of making stuff up without fact-checking anything (Al Franken was especially snarky about this.) But all Limbaugh was doing was reading the papers and commenting on what was in the news but hadn’t made the MSM radar screen. Fact-checking was the reporters’ job, yet Limbaugh got blamed (and the news discredited) because of partisan hatred for the man. The more things change….
Who is the least credible, a talk radio jock referencing a MSM story, or a citizen journalist linking to a MSM story?
Pile – the issue isn’t the credibility of those referencing MSM reports. The issue is the credibility of the MSM. If they were unbiased (hah!) and did their fact-checking, there would be no problem with CITIZEN JOURNALISTS linking to them. But they aren’t and they don’t , so there is.
But – as a CITIZEN JOURNALIST! – do I get access to the no-host bar at the Royal Wailea?
Spambuster word: need
Uh-huh!