Reading Response 3

" I strongly believe in the power of weblogs to transform both writers and readers from "audience" to "public" and from "consumer" to "creator." Weblogs are no panacea for the crippling effects of a media-saturated culture, but I believe they are one antidote." - Rebecca Blood

This excpert from the conclusion of Rebecca Blood's "Weblogs: History and Perspective" exemplifies my opinion on the way digital media is effecting the evolution of writing.  As I have said before, the blurred line between author and audience is what makes blogs so special.  Although this transcendence does not benefit information exchange, because of the lack of Ethos presented by the typical commenter, it helps the reader view any subject from a number of different viewpoints.  For example, a conservative news organization, like Fox News, will show bais in many of their stories, but with things like online commenting and Youtube Video responses, the other side now has a chance to express their opinion.  Although bias should never exist in a mainstream media outlet, it does, and a responsive audience can help to shine a light on these blantant biases in mainstream media.

This new form of media allows for literally anybody's voice to be heard, and as John Hockenberry's "The Blogs of War" discusses, sometimes everybody's voice is not meant to be heard.  As American soldiers stationed in Iraq begin to use blogs to share their stories with the world, a new national threat emerges.  The scadal created by the Abu Ghraib Prison abuse is rooted in new media.  The instant sharing of images is what allowed these pictures of tortured Iraqis to surface.  Although many will say the discovery of these photos is a bad thing, it is because of new media we have become aware of the atrocities taking place, and now we can take measures to fix them.  This situation is identical to how advances in video journalism effected Americans during the Vietnam War.  Because videographers and journalists were able to document the tragedies taking place overseas, a large resistance to the war emerged.  Without independent sources sharing these violent images with the American people, public resistance would be nonexistant, because the goverment would be able to hide what is actually going on if it weren't for these dedicated journalists. 

Blogging has changed the way information is delivered.  Unfortunatly, blogs are not a bipartisan news source, so if we begin to rely too heavily on blogs for information, our access to viable information will be lessened.  As blogs grow, it will be neccessary for an Author to develop credibility, or Ethos, amongst their audience, or else their news will not be seen as valid.