There has been much debate this week over a comment Pastor Wilson made about blogs. I do not wish do rehash the discussion, by any means, however, I do wish to explore the comment itself rather than the commentor and the tone. My take of the comment was that many bloggers are either trite and self-absorbed or uninteresting and either way, playing with a medium without considering the full ramifications of said medium. Whether other people got the same impression of the comment that I did is not what I want to discuss either.
What I do want to discuss is whether or not this is true. To state it plainly: I believe it is true. Let me greatly qualify that. First of all, I'll say that I've been blogging for about 8 months now, so the scope of my experience is only 8 months worth. I have undoubtably run accross quite a few blogs that are self-promoting and self-absorbed to one degree or another. The most self-absorbed writers are not Christians, so I'm not even going to get into those, but I will mention that I've seen several of what I call "complaining blogs" which are (from what I can tell) written by Christians. That's a problem. Complaining is as much a sin on a blog as it is in real life.
I've come across others who seem to picture themselves as the hero in the story of their lives, as told by themselves. While this can certainly get out of hand, a blog is by its very nature, self-promoting. When I write, I'm writing what I think, how I feel, what happened to me today. Does that make a blog inherently arrogant? I don't think so. As in all things, we should be humble. I think as we blog (and I'm saying this for myself as much as for anyone else) we need to ask ourselves if we're publishing our blogs with the right attitude.
Another thing that has been brought up in this discussion is the "links" issue. I've long debated how I should go about linking people. What I've decided to do is link blogs that I enjoy. I'll admit, I like other people to read my blog. I like to see myself linked by other people. I have statistic trackers on my blog. Not only do I like to be read, I like to know who's here. Perhaps that's my own vanity. Perhaps I'm wrong. But honestly, I do the same thing in real life. I like other people to like me. I like people to want to hang out with me and value my opinion and friendship. I think I'd be in error if I didn't want this. People who have the "I don't care what anyone else thinks about me" attitude suffer from a different kind of arrogance. I'm not going for popularity here, rather friendship and iron sharpening iron. So if you don't want to link me, don't. I have things in common with some people and not with others. Some people might think I'm as fun as a barrell of monkeys, others might think I'm as dull as a sack of bricks. Just as people choose friends based on their common interests, my links reflect common interest. I don't think there's anything wrong with that.
And while I'm on the subject: I think blogging is a great tool for keeping in touch with family and friends who I don't see very often. While I've yet to see any of my blog relationships (with people I didn't know before I blogged) turn into anything real, it happens. A lot.
Moving on to the medium of blogging: how can we deny that it's a new thing, of which all the ramifications have not been seen? I think the oldest blogs I've seen date back to about 1999. Maybe they've been around longer, but even if that's the case, I'd give it 6 years, max. As such a new thing, it is hard to judge the impact of internet-community. Some might object that internet-community is an oxymoron, if you're an interactive blogger (one who reads and comments on other blogs as well as writing you're own blog), you probably know what I mean. Here's the rub:blogs affect real life. Some people don't seem to realize that what they say on their blog has an impact elsewhere. It never ceases to amaze me when people who, for all I know, know nothing of my existence, tell me they read my blog. PLEASE don't misinterpret that statement as arrogance. I'm saying that you never know who's watching you and who's being affected by what you say. That means: don't gossip or slander. Don't respond hastily. Don't respond in anger. Real life rules apply here just as much as anywhere else. I know I've been guilty of thinking to myself, "I probably shouldn't say this," then immediately hitting "post." Blogging lends itself to whatever the cyper-equivalent is of shooting your mouth off. I've seen real relationships severely damaged by conversations held on a blog. I personally have lost respect for people because of how they behaved on their blog. Sarcasm is frequently lost in a blog. I tend to be really sarcastic sometimes, but even people who know me in real life have misinterpreted my tone. It's very easy to do. This being the case, I think it's important that we think about the possible interpretations of our comments before we post them.
I don't pretend to know all the benefits and consequences of blogging, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't do it. It does mean we should do it carefully.
Okay...I could go on, but I won't. I know I'm sounding very preachy, but I wanted to write that for myself and for anyone else who is still reading at this point. I'm very interested in feedback. I think it's important that we, as bloggers, do understand the ramifications of what we're doing here. I haven't even addressed "blogging for the entertainment of others" as I intended to, but it's getting late...some other time.
Posted by christin at September 18, 2003 11:26 PM | TrackBackVery nicely written. I like it. (especially the part about complainer's).
Posted by: Alex at September 19, 2003 02:30 AMbtw - where can I find Wilson's comment on blogs? I haven't read it yet.
Posted by: Alex at September 19, 2003 02:31 AMBlog on Christin. You hit the nail on the head, I do believe.
Posted by: SonofThunder at September 19, 2003 08:50 AMI msut agree whole heartedly. I find myself falling all too easily into the complaining trap. As a Christian and an angry northerner that's a huge stumbling block for me. It seems that sarcasm/complaining/non-trust are the standard way of life up here.
I just posted a reant the other day because I just needed to let off steam. Don't get me wrong it helped to let off some steam but after rereading it I can see that no one else would really know if I was letting off steam or complaining and I must admit that I was actually complaining a bit.
Posted by: ColeSlaw at September 19, 2003 10:06 AMChristin,
I enjoy your humor, your love of family and friends, and your style. Nice post. And it doesn't hurt that Annie thinks the world of you. I'll be reading!
I like your take on Wilson's statements, and blogging in general. Ironically, I was writing a venting post right before I read ColeSlaw's post on that topic and then this post of yours. It's not the type of writing I usually get into on my blog, but I sometimes enjoy reading the vent types of posts by other bloggers if they are done in a lighthearted or humourous way, and that's what I was going for. Whether or not I achieved it is in the eye of the reader, I suppose.
I too write and read blogs for the sake of interaction. What is disappointing is that sometimes the most trite posts seem to be the ones where the most interaction actually takes place.
That has gotten me thinking lately about how I should write my blog. Do I give up trying to write about the "important" things I'm thinking about or feeling because it seems no one is interested in those types of posts? Or is it better to write for myself and let the comments fall where they may? My answer at this point is the second option.
Posted by: John at September 19, 2003 11:46 AMI chose the second option too, John. There have been times that I've written something really heartfelt and had no comments, yet I can get 20 comments when I ask if people prefer creamy or crunchy peanut-butter. I'll keep posting both types of things because I know I've read other people's heartfelt posts and really appreciated them, but didn't really have anything to add and then there are times that I just want something fun.
As for the complaining: I think there's a way to say, "this really bothers or annoys me" without slipping into the "please feel sorry for me, I'm mistreated and no one loves me" attitude. As long as we keep in mind the temptation to complain for the sake of complaining, I think it can be avoided.
Posted by: Christin at September 19, 2003 11:59 AMchunky peanut butter thanks
sorry couldn't resist.
Posted by: ColeSlaw at September 19, 2003 12:28 PMI think a person's blog is completely their domain. It is a place where they should be able to say/vent/discuss/confess/articulate/postulate (well, you get the idea) anything that comes into their head. The fact that readers can make comments enlivens the 'blog party' as far as I'm concerned. If a particular blog is ONLY about whining and complaining (or any other one dimensional subject) then readers will fall away soon enough. As long as we all write from an honest heart and express what we are thinking or feeling or dealing with, then we are all connecting as human beings. I see that as an inherently good thing.
Thanks for furthering the discussion of blogs and their cultural and spiritual relevance
Posted by: Rus at September 19, 2003 04:48 PMThis along with Bene Diction's recent discussion with Ted Olsen of Christianity Today regarding the nature of blogdom present an interesting bit of introspection.
True enough, there are a lot of blogs out there that, quite frankly, are not worth reading. Statistically, this makes sense. You have (allegedly) hundreds of thousands of people blogging. While all of these people undoubtable have the potential to write things interesting and worth the time of reading (as life itself is so entirely interesting that even the dullest of days can become interesting when properly presented in text), the fact is that only a minority of those blogging will have the skill or imagination to present their opinions in a manner worthwhile. This becomes especially evident when we consider that the bulk of bloggers are not writers, have no editors, and are not well-read enough to recognize an invigorating piece of writing.
But in the end, so what? Most bloggers are blogging to fulfill some personal desire. Some simply enjoy the interaction. Some enjoy that their blogger becomes a sort of living database for their ideas. Some enjoy sharing their lives and minutiae with friends and relatives halfway around the world. Myself, I began blogging simply as an exercise to keep myself in the practice of writing while I pursued other avenues professionally. After a year or two, my blog became a mix of personal expression and pure entertainment.
Blogging is necessarily personal and self-centered (as is the act of writing a book for publication). The blogger has an opinion and decides his own opinion is worth public hearing. Clearly self-conscious, bloggers often run the risk of appearing self-absorbed or arrogant. The thing is, while the blogger may truly be arrogant, the blog is not. It is simply public expression (like the act of speaking, performing, or writing a book) and as such, can only be critiqued individually rather than stereotypically.
Anytime a person speaks of blogs en totality, he makes a fool of himself. Being the product of individual minds, they can only be treated individually (or at most generically - i.e., "Warblogs spend too much time talking politics"). This again operates analogous to books. We cannot say "books today are poorly written" or "books today are not as good as they were two hundred years ago" because, well, this cannot be true. We might admit that many books are of a lesser quality, but we would have to also admit that some books are much better than a lot of older books. Like books, we must view blogs individually.
Blogs can be genius-funny: Memoirs of a Samurai Barber
Blogs can be informative: Bene Diction Blogs On
Blogs can be relevant: A blog Apart
Blogs can be any number of things and they can be done well or done poorly and each MUST be taken on it's own merits.
Posted by: The Dane at September 20, 2003 09:30 PM