"Bloggers, like politicians, serve a constituency. [...] [B]loggers are always looking to add to their viewership; and election results are tallied in terms of page clicks and community feedback rather than raw voting numbers."
Thanks for putting that thought out there, Joe. I wouldn't say all bloggers are "always looking to add to their viewership," or even that those who are seeking more attention are necessarily wrong to do so ... but I completely agree with the tone of your post - which is (as I understand it) that many people blog in order to get attention for good or ill purposes, and that we all ought to be careful when reading blogs to discern between the bloggers with good motives and the bloggers with bad motives.
Makes me think about what I'm really doing in my blogging for Know More Media. I like taking time out to think - is my blogging really effective? What's the real goal of this or that blog? Why did I just spend an hour making comments at other blogs? What's the likely result of working on project X? Etc.
So, don't let blogging become a popularity contest. You don't have to blog better than anybody else or get more traffic than anybody else. You just have to try to be better than yourself every day.
That's funny you mention this. I just posted something similar to this a few days ago on my blog, which you can reach if you click my name-link. I worded my displeasure a little differently, but I really don't like those who blog or try to get readers just so they can seem better than others. This isn't high school anymore.
Posted by: Diane | November 11, 2006 5:03 PM | Permalink to Comment