RECENTLY, THE FIRST "blogger" was given credentials by the White House to attend the daily press briefings. The implication is that bloggers have a status similar to that of journalists. Naturally, this makes mainstream journalists react with hand-wringing, worrying that their professionalism is being compromised by "quasi-journalists," or worse.
Before addressing the larger issues of the relationship between bloggers and journalism, key concepts need to be made clear. "Blog" is short for "Web log" and generally connotes an online journal that is managed by one person or a group of individuals (bloggers).
Blogs considered collectively are the "blogosphere." As a blog is a journal, there are usually multiple daily postings to the Web site about contemporary events or issues, and links are provided to articles, news stories and other blogs.
The subject matter of blogs and the type of people who run them vary considerably. Many blogs are political, but others are devoted to sports, photography and medicine. Some bloggers have no expertise in their subject matter, while others have extensive knowledge and backgrounds.
Finally, blogs differ widely in their credibility. Some bloggers think little about the information they pass along or how they characterize it, while others worry greatly about what one might call ethical standards of presenting information.
As to the question of the relationship between blogging and journalism, journalists, or members of the "old media" (print news and major news networks), often make the case that blogging is a detriment to the public good. This argument often highlights two major disadvantages of bloggers: their bias and their lack of expertise.
Bloggers are characterized as being ideologically motivated (some of the most influential bloggers have been conservative) and therefore prejudiced in their presentation of information. Moreover, bloggers are seen as being neophytes, as people sitting at home in their pajamas - as one "old media" insider snidely put it in September - with little knowledge or experience reporting on critical issues.
Counterpoised to these bloggers are professional reporters with extensive backgrounds in subject areas and, what's more, journalistic training that promotes objectivity.
