Blogs and the Transformation of Political Media

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past five to ten years, you probably already know that the internet has changed the way people look at the news. This is both exciting and frightening, as new sources become scrambled in with the masses. Information may not always be accurate and some sources may be very opinionated. All major news stations are online, and you can still get reliable information from them. This includes FOX, MSNBC, CNN etc. Also many newspapers run articles on their websites to gain readership. Even with these large media corporations, there is still an evolution happening. More people are turning to Web Logs, or Blogs, which are written by individuals or groups of people who want their opinions on political matters heard. There is a good and bad side to this, as people and become very opinionated, and may skew events to fit in with their ideal perspective. I myself am an example. Anyone in the world can start a blog and give their opinion on any matter from behind their keyboard. They can do it anonymously, or, if they have a big ego, stick their name and political banners all over their web-space. I blog mainly about philosophy, with the occasional political twist. Business and government is what sets me off, therefore when I have an opinion, I simply log-on and write until my heart is content. This not only gives people something to read and respond to, but it is my chance to try and influence people into my own mindset.

Influence is a very big part of blogging. As an author you want to convey a perspective, therefore you want people to agree with what you have to say in order to move an issue forward. As an example, in 2006 liberal bloggers attacked Democratic Senator Joe Lieberman for supporting Bush’s Iraq war policies. Influence and opinions were on a grand scale, so when Lieberman lost in the Democratic primary, bloggers cheered a victory.

There seems to be a war brewing between liberals and conservative blogs on the topic of politics. Bill O’Reilly from the FOX Network attacks liberal blogs such as “The Daily KOS” and “Media Matters” with his own blogs and radio programs. Debates and conflicts such as this may cause confusion to readers as to what side they should take on any given subject. Readers may become caught up in the fray of opinions from television personalities and authors on opposite ends of the political spectrum. Misrepresentation of material and opinions can also be a large negative aside-effect of blogging from individuals. War policies from the President have been vastly criticized and praised by bloggers. Information can be taken out of context to convey a point to readers.

As blogs become ever more popular and opinions ever more prevalent, I expect to see an increase of political activity in the form of campaign contributions, voter turnout and debate. Instead of getting news from one source, Americans now have a choice of whether to follow opinions of corporations or the original content and talking points of their peers and the general public. Greater sources can be beneficial to breaking through a new barrier of how we interpret and create opinions on political matters that affect us.