Comments on: Stark contrasts http://blog-o-blog.com/17/02/2008/stark-contrasts/ is muffin but trouble Wed, 23 Dec 2009 14:12:42 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9 hourly 1 By: James http://blog-o-blog.com/17/02/2008/stark-contrasts/comment-page-1/#comment-345 James Mon, 18 Feb 2008 04:54:06 +0000 http://blog-o-blog.com/17/02/2008/stark-contrasts/#comment-345 I would argue American papers were exactly community forums, and they were also freely partisan. Newspapers were very engaging "blogs" talking to each other and with the community. Factual accuracy was a problem, but firsthand reports and commentaries were frequent. Revolutionary papers and letters (public read what we now consider private) read much like political blogs today. Things didn't really get national and sensational until the 1870's... and despite the NYT modelinq professional form, all really went downhill from there, I believe. I argue blog mentality is not new, and it seems to appear "naturally" until corrupt it. The rise of blogs themselves attests tc this theory. Small papers don't learn blog thinking, I believe, they ARE the same as blog mentality, and they have been for a lonq time. Ideally those garrulous fargoans should have their table covered with papers. This is one way newspapers can survive internet death. I would argue American papers were exactly community forums, and they were also freely partisan. Newspapers were very engaging “blogs” talking to each other and with the community. Factual accuracy was a problem, but firsthand reports and commentaries were frequent. Revolutionary papers and letters (public read what we now consider private) read much like political blogs today.

Things didn’t really get national and sensational until the 1870’s… and despite the NYT modelinq professional form, all really went downhill from there, I believe.

I argue blog mentality is not new, and it seems to appear “naturally” until corrupt it. The rise of blogs themselves attests tc this theory. Small papers don’t learn blog thinking, I believe, they ARE the same as blog mentality, and they have been for a lonq time.

Ideally those garrulous fargoans should have their table covered with papers. This is one way newspapers can survive internet death.

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