Tipping the Media Scales

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A funny thing happened on the way to the World Economic Forum.  OK, actually it didn’t happen until the end.  The Assistant Managing Editor of BusinessWeek’s innovation coverage became friends with a couple of bloggers.  From Nussbaum On Design:

“The soiree was swell I have now gone over to the dark side--to bloggers in the battle with MainStream Media. Of course, not all MSM folks refuse to get the idea of community, collaboration and conversation. My own boss at BW totally gets it. But there were so many at Davos who didn't.

I chatted up Jeff J. and Ariana H. and Jimmy W. (wikipedia) this trip out and found myself in alignment with them, more so than old pals at newspapers and magazines.”

Why is this significant?  It’s significant because it may capture a key theme we could be seeing more of in the near future.  Bloggers have become respectable.  Well, not all bloggers to be fair.  And while some think that Social Media and Mainstream Media have blurred all together—I think the relationship illustrated in Bruce’s post shows both division and alignment, if not a relationship—a relationship that appears to be turning into—gasp...

mutual respect.

OK, I’m taking some liberties with this post.  I’m editorializing you could say.  Of course I am.  That’s because I’m not a reporter.  I don’t have to be objective.  You don't come here for objectivity right?  You want to hear opinions—another distinction between the MSM and Social Media content generators (though let’s be honest—we all have opinions which can seep into what we do).  Here’s another interesting tidbit from Nussbaum’s recent post:

“Something important is happening and we have to be part of it and evolve with it. So Jeff and Ariana, let's get more user generated content on our blogs and deepen our conversation with our own communities.”

One could argue that the last bit seems almost cliché.  “Conversation”—and “community” are fast becoming near-buzzwords in this space.  But consider the source—a veteran journalist reaching out to those who sit on the other side of the “Media Scale”.  In short, we may not be moving along as quickly as the hype suggests (see Second Life), but personal publishing (AKA, blogging) and the broader Social Media movement just might be gaining credibility.  I’ll end on a thought I brought up during my “Blog’s Eye View” presentations:

Comments

[gianandrea facchini]

only the blogosphere could harm itself.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Could it be that bloggers are fast becoming the new "sources" for interesting content? All buzz words aside, practitioners at a certain level are often too busy to take a media call; bloggers are already talking about many of the subjects the MSM is grappling with.

The other thought is that bloggers may be considered the early tool and topics adopters among the population MSM aims to attract, so it would make sense to tap into that knowledge.

Mutual respect is always a good idea to establish a ground floor for constructive and productive outcomes, regardless of the goals.

[Cam Beck]

David, you know I'm an advocate of blogs, but I might also suggest that one of the main reasons "it's almost as common for someone to reference a blog source as it is an established resource such as Forrester" is cost, not credibility. This distinction isn't to diminish the attractiveness of blogs at all. The limits of our own resources demand that we spend either money or time on our research to build credibility.

For those who are endowed with wealth but short on time, I'm certain Forrester will be more than happy to relieve them of their money, and Forrester will have earned it by providing peace of mind to those willing to make an investment.

For those who are short on wealth but long on time can check multiple sources and delve into the depths of their own reason to establish a deeper understanding of a topic, after which they can share their learning with others at no cost to them. The capital the bloggers earn in return for their time is the credibility they crave and, as it turns out, need in order to be a successful blogger.

In this way, blogs are great democratizers, and the conversations they engender allow ideas to be floated, checked, confirmed, or refuted by the hoards of people who are more or less experts on a host of subjects themselves. No longer do we have to rely on the expertise of Forrester for absolutely EVERYTHING. This prospect ought not make Forrester anxious, but it should inspire them to elevate their game... to provide more depth, insight, and accuracy in how they report. It might even motivate them open the research up to conversation and criticism among the masses who have proved their worth when stacked up against paid researchers such as, for instance, those who "verified" the authenticity of the Bush National Guard "memos" during the last Presidential election.

All of this brings us full circle, because the original statement that brought us here was that people are citing blogs because of their increasing credibility, and as I just mentioned, credibility is a natural consequence of bloggers utilizing the resource of time effectively when capital is scarce.

Still, I might suggest that in our imperfect world, the motivation for citing blogs instead of Forrester remains cost, and credibility is increasingly being assumed - not because there are valid reasons to assume it on EVERY blog (The process through which credibility can be verified still takes more time than most can spend individually except through quickly taking account of who cites or reads the blogs), but because the cost of making the assumption is less than the cost of paying for research.

I hope that was coherent... I still have to get some coffee this morning. :)

[MarcusBrown]

I have become the forrester of sausage knowledge. ;-)

[David Armano]

Gianandrea, do you feel that the blogoshpere is currently harming itself or is your comment more of a warning?

"Mutual respect is always a good idea to establish a ground floor for constructive and productive outcomes, regardless of the goals."

Valeria, so true—and yet such a difficult point to get to. Mutual respect is difficult to achieve when individuals see things differently. Though wouldn't it be great if there was more of this?

Cam,
What the heck was in your cornflakes this morning? has Marcus been spiking it with his sausages? Seriously, you bring up a good point about cost. Though I prever calling it value. Folks are increadingly finding value in blogs. It just happens to be cost effective. A bonus.

Marcus, what can I say to your comment. I just watched your video and actually, I think you may be the "New Yorker" of sausage.

:)

[Roger Bauer]

Great post! I would argue that social media will tip the scale a little more towards social media than that post 2007. I'd suggest that it's about even right now based on cuts all around in traditional media, but that may be a short sighted opinion.

You made me think, and that's the sign of a good article/post. Thank you.

[Cam Beck]

I had carrot muffins for breakfast this morning, David. :)

I agree with your distinction between "cost" and "value." The reason I used "cost," though, was because our assessment of value can often be wrong. Perhaps it can be best described as the difference between "perceived" value and "real" or "inherent" value.

In other words, I might pay (in money or time) for information, but the quality of that information (and its scarcity) determines what the inherent value of it is. However, I might not be in the best position to judge the information's authenticity, so even though I might think it is highly valuable, it is actually worthless, and my motivator is, in essence, cost, not value.

[Herb]

Heres the question - Do you think MSM will become more like blogs (and wikis, etc) or do you think blogs will become more like MSM?

Too bad it is a little late to take bets...

[Paul McEnany]

I'm not sure why so many bloggers feel the need for us to emulate the MSM. If that's the goal, we'll always be in some sort of subservient position. Most bloggers aren't journalists, hell, turn on the tv; most journalists aren't journalists, anymore.

Blogging adds value by means of opinion, if we were all just "reading the news," there probably wouldn't be the same sort of renaissance that we're experiencing now.

[DA]

Cam, I see your point about cost though I still think that low cost + high quality = value.

Herb, YES—I think it's happening right now. MSM has all the tools, blogs etc. I just saw that CNET is mandating thet their bloggers respond to comments and some bloggers will try to emulate MSM. But there is still the fundemental difference of getting paid and being aligned with a media company which is what distinguishes MSM.

Paul, some bloggers emulate the MSM to help speed up the credibility process, but to your point—blogs should be an extension of an individual's POV. I agree, that's part of the appeal.

[alyssa]

I think - sometimes - in blogs you gain access to a whole new level of expert. People write about the things they are passionate about and have expand their knowledge. I love tabbing through blogs about everything from personal finance to teaching. The personal POV, that you mention, is the best part.

On the other hand, sometimes I feel like everyone is doing the same thing we did 10 years ago at the Trib. I have deja vu every day.

[MarcusBrown]

round two of sausage action up and running david.

[Cam Beck]

David -- You're right. Although to be ornery, I might introduce the following equation: (Scarcity + Quality)/(Cost) = Value, but quality isn't always knowable at the start. Hence my dilemma in classifying it. :)

[gianandrea facchini]

david, in such a wide scenario it's easy to find people looking for the short way to money, success or whatever linked to the hype. mine is a warning for the discerning bloggers because integrity is a treasure.

[Ralf Beuker]

David, first of all for dissecting this!

After all being an active blogger on design management myself for 3 years now I've recently experienced the limits of my 'credibility' when the link to my blog has been deleted from the design management article because of the Wikipedia rules:

"Links normally to be avoided ...
... 11. Links to blogs and personal webpages, except those written by a recognized authority.

So as it semms we still fight with a two edged sword ;-)

[DA]

Ralph, I agree—it's a double edged sword and the whole authority thing doesn't help (authority really means popularity/influence) You can have "low authority" and really know what you are talking about.

Nice blog BTW.

[Ann]

Nice post! You have said it very well. Keep going.