Bloggers are People Too
Virginia's political bloggers gathered this weekend -- in person, not in cyberspace -- for a bit of self-reflection, so-so hotel food, and some discussion about the future of political discourse in the Old Dominion.
Jim Bacon was there.
So were Waldo Jaquith and Chad Dotson, who conceived the event.
Will Vehrs attended.
Kenton Ngo came (he's 14, so his parents drove him to Charlottesville)
Norman Leahy was there for a bit.
And of course, Lowell Feld, too.
There were dozens of other bloggers, too, and a handful of politicians and some members of the non-blogging press. (Disclosure: I was there, too, as part of both worlds.)
On the brink of Virginia's first bloggable election, it's not a bad idea to think about what impact, if any, this new form of media might have.
At the end of a seven-hour conference, one thing is clear: no one knows.
There was certainly a sense of hope among the bloggers gathered that their round-the-clock musings will affect the electoral landscape in some way. Most acknowledged that only a tiny slice of the population even knows blogs exist, and fewer still read them on a regular basis. Still, there was some agreement that the political elite may pay more attention to political blogs, and that gives bloggers hope.
The discussion centered around concern about potential regulation of blogs by overeager lawmakers. That prompted some talk about the creation of a code of conduct for bloggers. It wasn't a universally popular idea -- to say the least. But at least some bloggers seemed to like the idea. Less than 24 hours later, Vehrs had already offered one draft.
After the meeting, about a dozen bloggers gathered at a Mexican food restaurant for drinks, food and some less-serious gabbing. All-in-all it was a good start to a conversation -- a real conversation, not a blogged one -- among people of tremendously divergent opinions.
Let's hope it happens again.
By Michael Shear |
August 28, 2005; 10:04 PM ET
| Category:
Media
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Posted by: Will Vehrs | August 30, 2005 07:29 AM
We already posted a "Blogger's Code" on our blog last Friday. Ck it out:
http://blog.nam.org/archives/2005/08/friday_follies_the_bloggers_co.php
Pat Cleary,
The Manufacturers Blog
www.blog.nam.org
Posted by: Pat Cleary | September 1, 2005 07:02 AM
Pat, One Man's Trash linked to it and it was hilarious.
Also more realistic.
Posted by: Will Vehrs | September 1, 2005 07:11 AM
Didn't see it but will ck it out -- thanks!
Posted by: Pat Cleary | September 1, 2005 09:04 AM
Didn't see it but will ck it out -- thanks!
Posted by: Pat Cleary | September 1, 2005 09:05 AM
So far the campaign for the office of Virginia's Govenor has been a farce. Kaine is a pain, Kilgore a bore. Neither one of them have advanced any real solutions to the fiscal problems that have been ignored by State Officials for over twenty five years.
Posted by: JPnNV | October 6, 2005 06:36 PM
Russ Potts advanced realistic solutions to VA's fiscal problems last year and he continues to push those same solutions now. I do not expect enough VA voters to "see the light" and vote for the one person who should be elected to keep VA on a sound fiscal path.
Posted by: JPnNV | October 6, 2005 06:44 PM
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Mike, you made a great contribution to the summit with your attendance, your questions, and your comments.
As for a blogger "code of conduct," if reaction to my draft is any indication, you'll remain one of the few bloggers who answers to one.