Why The Blogosphere Is So Important

All of us know that people establish blogs for many different reasons.

But does the blogosphere serve a significant purpose, a purpose other than a personal one such as an online diary or a meeting place for friends? According to this essay by Michael Freund, yes.

Short excerpt from the latter part of Mr. Fruend's essay:

[B]logs are a vibrant source of energetic and independent thinking, often providing readers with a fresh way of looking at things that is unencumbered by bureaucratic blinders or organizational self-interest.

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Time and again, blogs have shown themselves to be a potent communications tool....

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SURE, mainstream entities such as CNN, the BBC and The New York Times will continue to dominate the news business for years to come. But the battle for public opinion is far from being a lost cause....

The beginning of the article discusses the importance of how the blogosphere can counter moral relativism, political correctness, and the propaganda pervading the mainstream media:

As archeologists continue to excavate the site of the Mughrabi Gate alongside the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City, it remains anybody's guess what they might just find underneath the mounds of soil, rock and debris.

But one item already unearthed by this dig should have us all deeply concerned, and that is the mainstream media's disgraceful habit of parroting Arab propaganda.

It was just a few weeks ago that a shocking array of prominent media outlets, in their coverage of this non-event, went about spreading one irresponsible and malicious lie after another about the Mughrabi Gate dig, tarnishing Israel's image and inflaming public opinion against the Jewish state.

A headline in The Australian screamed "Palestinians unite to fight Temple Mount dig," as if the bulldozers were actually tearing up the mount itself. Across the globe, France 24, the international French news channel, declared: "Palestinians protest over Jerusalem mosque works," falsely implying that Israel was ripping apart a Muslim house of prayer. Similarly, China's official Xinhua news agency reported: "Arab League urges international response to Israel's dig at al-Aqsa Mosque," as though the earthmovers were displacing the mosque itself.

Perhaps the most egregious example was provided by Time magazine, whose editors could not resist taking a swipe at Israel by running the headline: "Raiders of the Temple Mount." It's hard to remember the last time so many falsehoods were spread so extensively in such a short period of time.

And here's something else to consider:

Over half of all bloggers are under the age of 30, underlining the importance of blogs to the next generation of decision-makers. Some of the most popular sites welcome hundreds of thousands or even millions of visitors.om

In recent years, blogs have come to play a key role not only in shaping the news, but in making it as well.

In my own experience, despite my being well out of my thirties, I find that I boot up the computer before reaching for the morning paper. Maybe I should be calling myself "Always Online." My family and friends think so!

[Hat-tip to Pamela at Maverick News Media]