I'm embarrassed about my earlier rant. It got a little garbled at the end. But I need just a wee bit more airtime on the WMB (white male blogger) thing. It's this simple: the problem is NOT a dearth of smart women bloggers... or talented minority bloggers. There are plenty of them. (See Halley's TEN NEW VOICES report card.)

The problem (if you agree there is one) is that the MSM (mainstream media) primarily points to A-list white male bloggers

I'm embarrassed about my earlier rant. It got a little garbled at the end. But I need just a wee bit more airtime on the WMB (white male blogger) thing. It's this simple: the problem is NOT a dearth of smart women bloggers... or talented minority bloggers. There are plenty of them. (See Halley's TEN NEW VOICES report card.)

The problem (if you agree there is one) is that the MSM (mainstream media) primarily points to A-list white male bloggers when they're talking about the blogosphere. Why? It's an unconscious bias. It's what MSM reporters (who tend to be white males) "see" when they scan the blogosphere.

Malcolm Gladwell devotes a whole section of Blink, his new book, on unconscious bias and how we engage in it all the time.  He cites some hair-raising examples. For example, a study showed that car salesmen spit out…

I think of my role as "geek translator." But sometimes (often in fact) I can't help saying "oh cool." I promise to say more about tagging soon. It applies to both keywords and photos and is a way for Web users to "tag" categories of content so it is searchable by other users.  In the meantime, here is something cool... and possibly pointless. (Or am I missing something?) It's a BlogMap of this blog. Thanks to Robert Scoble for the pointer.

I think of my role as "geek translator." But sometimes (often in fact) I can't help saying "oh cool." I promise to say more about tagging soon. It applies to both keywords and photos and is a way for Web users to "tag" categories of content so it is searchable by other users.  In the meantime, here is something cool... and possibly pointless. (Or am I missing something?) It's a BlogMap of this blog. Thanks to Robert Scoble for the pointer.

If you're still scratching your head over podcasting, the newest phenomenon to sweep the Web, read Stephan Spencer's "Move Over Blogs: Here Come Podcasts." This is the clearest explanation I've seen yet on what podcasting is and how it relates to RSS and blogs. Spencer lists some good podcasting ideas that could be used on a variety of Web sites, no matter what your product or service, or whether your organization is for-profit or non-profit. If you're still scratching your head over podcasting, the newest phenomenon to sweep the Web, read Stephan Spencer's "Move Over Blogs: Here Come Podcasts." This is the clearest explanation I've seen yet on what podcasting is and how it relates to RSS and blogs. Spencer lists some good podcasting ideas that could be used on a variety of Web sites, no matter what your product or service, or whether your organization is for-profit or non-profit. - Provide a thought-provoking tip of the day; just a short sound bite that your "listener subscribers" can download to an iPod, for example, and listen to on the run. (I love this idea. Better than a daily ezine or email, don't you think?) - Interview thought leaders in your field and publish these podcasts to your site. Again, your listener subscribers can download these audio interviews and tune in at their convenience.…

Here's a great post on Common Craft that explains the multiple differences between message boards and blogs. Scroll down to see Lee LeFever's nifty side-by-side comparison chart.

Key differences:

1) Message boards are decentralized and group run; blogs are centralized and often published by one person.

2) Responses or "comments" are required on a message board in order to create a discussion; "comments" on a blog post are optional.

3)

Here's a great post on Common Craft that explains the multiple differences between message boards and blogs. Scroll down to see Lee LeFever's nifty side-by-side comparison chart.

Key differences:

1) Message boards are decentralized and group run; blogs are centralized and often published by one person.

2) Responses or "comments" are required on a message board in order to create a discussion; "comments" on a blog post are optional.

3) Chronology:  blogs are always in reverse chronological order; topics and discussions on message boards can be organized and presented in different ways. Thanks to Shel Holtz for the pointer.