Mainstream Media Tries to Blog

Posted on July 27, 2005

Variety's Brian Lowry reports on some of mainstream media's attempts at blogging and he isn't impressed:

Newspapers have become strangely enamored with Web logs, a.k.a. blogs, recently adopting an "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em" mentality. Examples range from inkink-stained curmudgeons blogging away at the TV Critics Assn.'s semiannual gathering in Beverly Hills to the Los Angeles Times' revamped, Internet-oriented Sunday op-ed section. No one, in fact, is immune from high-tech pandering, including National Public Radio's "Talk of the Nation" program, which solicited emails last week containing listeners' TV series suggestions in a misguided attempt to seem cool.

Lowry also explains how difficult it would be to blog "events like press tour or the network upfronts." Despite the difficulty, Lowry attempts to blog his thoughts during some press tour Q&A sessions anyway and has some funny comments. Here are a few highlights:

9:17: Interesting Wall Street Journal editorial. I had no idea that President Bush had cured polio.
9:21: They're only up to Wednesday night? What is this, a congressional filibuster?
9:47: Mental note: Investigate Karl Rove's role in determining the "Dancing With the Stars" winner. Geez, get a life, people.
10:34: Tom Cruise and I are the same age. I should call my sister and thank her for never volunteering to handle my publicity.

On Squared comments on Lowry's column and questions why journalists even bother to report on press tours if they are so awful.

If the press tour is as wretched as Lowry's stream-of-consciousness internal brain babble makes it out to be at the bottom of the column, why in heaven's name does he and the rest of the critic sheep even bother going and "reporting" on it? Break away from the wool-wearers and find something the audience may really want to read about -- in a blog or in a story. Garbage in. Garbage out.

There are several mainstream media companies with blogs now. Here are just a few:

Variety (4): 4 Blogs covering games, comics, style and film.

CNET (29): 28 Blogs + Blogma

Fox News (6?): Six sort of blogs. Fox News really needs some help in the blogging department.

MSNBC.com (15): Altercation, Clicked + 13 others.

BusinessWeek (7): BlogSpotting + 6 others.

Washington Post (2): Achenblog and Deep Throat Blog

IDG (12): Blogfaction blogs

The Guardian (6): Newsblog + 5 others.

Christian Science Monitor (several): Several blogs and RSS feeds offered.

Check CyberJournalist.net for a bigger list of blogs by newspapers and journalists.