12 years ago, the straggly guy you see in the picture on the left started it all- the weblog. Yes, that's Jorn Barger who coined the word on 17th December, 2007. A weblog is actually, as the name suggests, a web log of events and places visited on the Internet. An online diary of sorts. The only difference is that it is published on a public platform for all and sundry to read. Today, the humble weblog name has been shortened to blog but its popularity has exploded. Blogs are easy to set up and most sites have helpful tips and even video tutorials to assist even the most clueless. Anyone and eveyone can set up a blog and statistics have proven so. According to Technorati's 2008 findings, there are 133 million blogs in the blogosphere!
With blogs, its writers are afforded a flexibility to edit the content at any time. Also, timeliness is a factor- unlike newspapers or magazines, bloggers can post their content in an instance. The additional aspect of having other people view and comment allows an instant communication flow that the print media doesn't have.
In terms of content, there are many different levels of blogs- from the exciting to the downright mundane. While it can be used to simply record a person's ramblings about their lives, it can also be an excellent avenue to air personal views and opinions as well as highlight important issues that affect society. With a wide variety of topics, netizens are spoilt for choice.
Blogs have also given way to a new generation of writers. No longer do you need to score an almost impossible publishing deal to get your words out there, you can simply publish it online. For free. Sure, there are debates going on about it, from the quality of writing to even the meaning of the word 'writer', but no one can deny the attraction of a well written blog. These people have turned blogging into a new industry and it's a highly lucrative one. The popular sites are money spinners due to advertisers being drawn in by the number of hits the blog gets. The only similarity it has with the publising world is that there are still far more blogs lingering in obscurity.
But the success stories are never the less inspiring and hundreds of self help websites have popped up, all on how to earn money from blogging. And it's no wonder- who wouldn't want to blog for a living?
Resource:
State of the blogosphere 2008, Technorati, viewed 21 February 2009,
http://technorati.com/blogging/state-of-the-blogosphere/
Image source: Wired News/ William Colburn
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