Blog Assignment 1

The article, “Why We Blog,” sought out to answer the question: Why do people blog? Through conducting interviews with various bloggers, they found out more about the blog sphere and those who contributed to it. An immediate observation was that bloggers varied in how often they posted (once a day verses once a month), the blog’s content (some wrote about personal matters where others wrote about pressing issues), and ethics. But one thing they all had in common was using their blogs as a mode of self-expression. The researchers discovered five major motivations for blogging: “documenting one’s life; providing commentary and opinions; expressing deeply felt emotions; articulating ideas through writing; and forming and maintaining community forums” (Nardi et al., 2004, p. 43).

Some of the reasons bloggers use blogs over other channels of communication is that blogs are less intrusive. Reading blogs is completely voluntary, unlike some other forms of communication, where responding is mandatory. Blogs are also less formal and more authentic; the reader is able to hear the voice of the blogger more easily. Bloggers also find that they can incorporate many different types of information into one location; they can combine news, popular trends, scholarly sources, and their own experience into their blog.

The bloggers also talked of the therapeutic value of expressing themselves. These people were able to explore their feelings through their writing without any restrictions. They were able to choose what they wrote about, which was very freeing for them. Being able to write about any topic of their choosing lead some bloggers to challenge themselves to become a better or more versatile writer. By using writing to think, bloggers were able to use their audience to their advantage by asking for feedback. The community feel in the blog world allows many bloggers to feel connected to others: those they know and those who are strangers. Conversing with others online also gives people more time to gather their thoughts and understand the situation before responding.

             I thought this article was very interesting. As a blogger, myself, I was intrigued to hear what other bloggers thought about blogging. I found that I agreed with all the conclusions of the study. I believe blogs are very useful tools in this age of technology. They bring a more personal aspect to the online world and give people the option to express themselves through writing. Anyone can create a blog and I think that is very empowering!

Reference:

Nardi, B. A., Schiano, D. J., Gumbrecht, M., and Swartz, L. (2004). Why we blog. Communications of the ACM, 47.