Bloggers continue to reshape politics and news media
By Jerome Simpson
European Commission Vice-President Margot Wallstrom does it at blogs.ec.europa.eu/wallstrom. Al Gore does it at blog.algore.com. Even the average man in the street can do it. What I'm referring to is blogging. But who really takes notice of blogs? And why post one anyway?
As I delve deeper into the world of blogs, I'm beginning to see their value, and not just for promoting individual agendas. In some places (Tibet, Kenya) blogs have provided first-hand accounts via text and MMS (multimedia messaging) of atrocities against humankind. Blogs also, in serving freelance or would-be journalists, offer a platform for voices that might not otherwise be heard.
Reporters without Borders, a Paris-based international NGO advocating for press freedom, recently published the Handbook for Bloggers and Cyber-dissidents. The handbook provides tips on how to set up an anonymous blog and "get around censorship." The organisation believes that blogs allow and encourage ordinary people to speak up, especially those who live under oppressive regimes. "Bloggers are often the only real journalists in countries where the mainstream media is censored or under pressure," according to the handbook blurb. "Only [bloggers] provide independent news."
Blogging, of course, is not without its risks, as the line drawn between freedom of expression and libel is often quite thin. And in some parts of the world, blogs actually have the authorities scared. Saudi Arabian officials, for example, locked up the country's most popular blogger in an attempt to intimidate online critics. And you can bet that repressive regimes are not alone in monitoring blogs. In April, an ultra-nationalist blogger in Hungary rallied around 1,000 right-wing protesters for a demonstration in Budapest, only to have been foiled by a counter-demonstration organised by the district mayor.
Blogs are also being tried out as a means of garnering political support. BBC World Service recently hosted a debate on their 'World Have Your Say' programme, and asked: "Do political bloggers make a difference?" Most respondents described (many via the programme's own blog page) their impact as negligible. Said one respondent: "Blogs are like the commentary section of a newspaper. You cannot and should not take everything to heart when you read them." One listener, however, took a more optimistic view: "The first requirement of any democracy is participation, and any medium that allows more people to participate is a good thing."
As a quick and informal means for putting information on the web, I see at least three positive functions of blogs: they're a valuable social networking tool for like-minded individuals; they have great potential as a powerful news source or even news medium; and they offer a potential platform for politicians to interact with CSOs and voters. The latter reason is why current EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas hopes that his online diary will "improve the level of debate and discussion on the shape that the next generation of environmental policies will take."
Dimas writes: "It is clear that developing and implementing policies that can effectively protect Europe's environment will be at the heart of the European 'project'. My hope is that this diary will improve the level of debate and discussion on the shape that the next generation of environmental policies will take."
In terms of leading by example in this regard, Dimas' action is praiseworthy.
The Handbook for Bloggers and Cyber-dissidents, which aims to foster credible blogging through the observation of basic ethical and journalistic principles, is available in five languages.
