You read, therefore I am…
Earlier today I mentioned an article in the Chicago Tribune about blogging becoming a springboard to mainstream journalism and its audience. In my EN105 class today we talked about how audience affects interest in writing and blogging. I’ve been wondering what it will take to keep my students interested in Pirate Blog beyond this semester. My policy is that any student who takes the class may post to the blog as long as they attend Park University. One student from last semester has posted this semester.
For Friday, I asked my class to read some of the individual blogs from Chuck Tryon’s class and determine, based on what they see and read, if any of them is a candidate for continued blogging.
Part of what I’m trying to do is encourage engaged, sustained writing. I think blogging is a good way to accomplish this, but that’s just a hypothesis that I’m testing. The hard data doesn’t look good. For example:
In the terms of the power law distribution of blog links, Rhetorica is moving up in the world. On the blogosphere ecosystem, I’ve been hovering toward the top of the “large mammals” list. That’s gratifying because I most certainly am seeking as large an audience as possible for my work.
But, also in terms of power law distribution, I lag far behind the top ten, known on the list as “higher beings.”
Recently, I’ve noticed a jump in traffic. My traffic grew along a typical logistic or ‘S’ curve over the first 14 months. In other words, growth was slow at first, then jumped, then slowed again, and leveled off. Now I’m in the middle of another sustained jump. Why?
I’d like to claim that my cogent commentary and scintillating analysis drive my growing traffic, but that would invite too many guffaws. And it wouldn’t be very accurate either. Instead, let me suggest something else that may have an impact on all of us bloggers: longevity.
A recent study claims that most bloggers give up within a year (with certain caveats). Even some prominent bloggers pack it in on occasion. Many of us miss MediaMinded, for example. Will we come to measure longevity in the blogosphere in terms of months? Does that growing archive list on the left-hand sidebar become an argument for serious attention?
The original article on power law distribution and blogging argues that it’s difficult for new bloggers to gain much attention without some kind of a push, e.g. fame in the corporal world or a journalist blogging for a newspaper. Further, blogging is not easy. To do it well requires a large commitment of time and effort. I exchanged e-mail recently with a media blogger who lamented not being able to post more often. This person said: “I don’t know how you do it.” I wrote back: “I make it a priority.” Rhetorica is here to stay (whatever that means).
My students have already expressed dismay about not drawing more comments–or in some cases any comments. For them, zero comments equal zero audience–and that’s a bummer. (Please read Pirate Blog and comment if you have a moment. I would appreciate it. And get in their faces–they need it.)
Finally, what is it that weblogs will become if bloggers soon abandon their projects and if the serious or enthusiastic among the new voices can’t find traffic (audience)? I’m wondering if, like many other features of the early internet, larger commercial entities will eventually take over such that bloggers will be employees of publications and independent internet innovators will move on to the next thing (whatever that turns out to be).
More later, but start with these — two of my earliest posts:
http://avoyagetoarcturus.blogspot.com/2002_01_01_avoyagetoarcturus_archive.html#8762845
http://avoyagetoarcturus.blogspot.com/2002_01_01_avoyagetoarcturus_archive.html#8802653
Not all the links work any more, I’m afraid. I’ll pass along the Scientific American article in e-mail.
Jay…it seems I’m behind the curve
Interesting observations. I think what we’re seeing happen follows your line of thinking. The two best pieces of advice one can give a new or emerging blogger, then, is: do it well, and stick to it.
What would be interesting is to study the “who” behind the tenacious ones. Just who sticks it out and why?
In my view, your bloglets have two problems: 1) They are blogging like they are writing term papers - most of my favorite bloggers are people that I think I would like to know in “real life”(assuming their blogging personalities are the same as their “real” personalities). The bloglets should write in a more personal way, and 2) their natural audience is their fellow students - is there no way the Park student body could be made aware of Pirate Blog? Is there a campus-wide email system that serves as a bulletin board for campus events and services? Some colleges require computers - is Park one? If Pirate Blog could be seen as a way to discuss campus affairs, the bloglets would have many more comments. Now, a question about your graph - what is the timeline for the increase? Was it around the time of the lead up to the war in Iraq? Was is around the time of the 2002 elections? Did you get a significant link from a bigger blogger? Without some kind of attachment to time, it just looks like half of a Bell Curve!
Rebecca…the curve graphic is just an illustration of the curve. It’s not an actual graph of my traffic.
As for the bloglets…I’ve been saying the same things to them in class. And we do try to get publicity. The school paper is supposed to do an article about it soon.
The term-paper tone is a routine problem caused, for the most part, by the crap they learned in high school. I try to beat it out them
The tone also suggests they are less than engaged–which is MY fault.
Okay, so get on Pirate Blog and tell them what you’re looking for. It might carry more weight coming from a “real” reader.
OK, but Doc, this “reader” is old enough to be their mother, and in some cases, their “grandmother”! Ay!YI!YI! It’s peer approval that counts - not some old bat!
Rebecca…you’d be surprised. I find that students respond well when they are taken seriously. Plus, you don’t have to tell them how old you are
Where can I find the results?
chuck…this was a class discussion assignment, so there’s nothing to find. Several in the class failed to do as I asked. Among those who did, we’ve come up with two names so far (I’m going to continue this after fall break):
Andrew Mullinax: The students see him as smart, engaged, and self-driven (perhaps by a need to be thought of as smart). They think blogging will appeal to him as a way to continue asserting himself as an emerging intellectual person.
Troung, Y-Thao: The students think he’s good at letting his personality show through. He seems to be having fun.
Odd spin to your comment: Y-Thao is actually female.
Hmmm…caught me with my cultural sexism showing.
I’ll make sure that misconception is corrected when next we meet. Fall break started today.