Catching up on my reading, I noted (a week late) the Big Deal between Reuters and Pluck (of BlogBurst fame).
This is a Big Deal, truly. If I understand it correctly, Reuters — a major news distributor — will run relevant blog posts from their BlogBurst network in a contextual way, alongside Reuters’ own original content. Here are the key points from the press release:
"With BlogBurst, publishers can present the most relevant and useful blog posts alongside related stories covering a variety of topics including news, politics, sports, health, fitness, technology, gadgets, travel, food and entertainment. With thousands of approved bloggers in the network, the BlogBurst service … connects high quality, provocative voices from the blogosphere with mass market news and information."
Somebody pinch me. I can’t help but think that this is a Good Thing. Certainly it cements the relevance of The Bloggers in the evolving media mix.
Many people turn to blogs — purposefully or not (thanks, Google!) — to gain additional context on their search terms and areas-of-interest. This deal streamlines the process. Reading an article about D.C. politics in a Reuters article? — Maybe you want to hear voices from the Far Left and Far Right weigh in on the same topic? Bingo.
One can’t help wondering about how a deal like this might impact the A-list bloggers. Surely most of them are already affiliated with BlogBurst (or could be, in a snap). A deal like this could vault them to ever-higher fame, and make the Z-lister feel like an even bigger zedhead. A deal like this might also motivate bloggers to more carefully scrutinize "what it takes" to make the cut at BlogBurst, and evolve their sites from "personal rants" to "thoughtful musings."
The Professionalization of Blogging. You knew it was coming.
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Todd,
Did someone once tell me that you wrote a post (or, article) on the topic of who should and who shouldn’t write a blog?
Because, if you did - I’d love it if you could point me to where I could find it as it would be relevant to a post which I’m currently writing for my own blog.
And, the Reuters/Pluck/BlogBurst is really exciting. Professionalization means further legitimization of the blogger’s place in the world of public commentary, too.
Though, I’ll really be moved and impressed when the word “blog” and “blogger” start showing up in the spell check function on my computer…
K
Hi Kate -
I am not sure that I ever did write a post about “who should blog” as it was well covered in the blogosphere about 6+ months ago (in a meme that started at SVW).
But if you want my opinion: anyone in a company who has opinions and insights ought to be welcomed to blog, as long as they follow simple guidelines that protect their employers’ reputation and confidential info.