Is the Blogosphere Just an Echo Chamber?

Posted on February 12, 2005

Is the blogosphere pumping itself up and encouraging itself so much that it is just an echo chamber for positive blogging news? While 8 million have made blogs according to the recent Pew Internet study -- how many blogs are active and professionals blogs? How many blogs are written by teens or even tweens? How many of the people that read business-related blogs are reading them instead of the Wall Street Journal, Marketwatch.com or Forbes? Is traffic being driven to blogs because of their incredible content or because blogs have caught onto RSS feeds faster than the mainstream media and leading news websites?

These questions will all be answered in due time. While blogs are a great new medium, bloggers have to be cautious so that they don't overestimate their own importance.

Jack Shafer asks similar question in his Slate.com article called Blog Overkill. Shafer says, "New media technologies almost never replace old media technologies, they merely force old technologies to adapt and find new ways to connect with their audiences."