February 18, 2006
just don’t be surprised when you get left behind
As I am doing nothing but make money via blogs, courtesy of English Cut, Stormhoek and some other projects, I find this Slate article, “Twilight of the Blogs– Are they over as a business?” rather humorous, for all the wrong reasons:
But as businesses, blogs may have peaked. There are troubling signs20 Responses to “just don’t be surprised when you get left behind”
I wrote a post last night that came at the same thought from a slightly different angle.
If anything the problem for Big Media and other dinosaurs is going to get worse. The forthcoming launch of Vista with RSS embedded so deeply into it’s core is going to accelerate the death of those who don’t get it.
And I know this is so last weeks meme, but it’s also going to trample today’s gatekeepers.
I agree with you, Hugh. There is no similarity whatsoever between the blog growth of 2006 and the internet bubble about to burst in 1999. I see no signs; indeed, blogs are roughly where Web 1
Things Are Just Starting to Get Interesting Around Here
On Slate today Daniel Gross wonders whether we’re seeing the end of the business of blogs. Looking over his shoulder at the bubble that ended the dotcom days, and seeing the buzz that’s been building in the blogsphere, I suppose it’s…
Hugh says:
“This is the trouble with journalists. Because they generally don’t do anything, except write endlessly about the people who do, their opinions are always based upon second-hand sources. Which makes for a pretty murky lens to view the world through.
Hey, guess what, Big Media? Unlike your poor, sorry excuse of a career, making money via blogs is all about doing interesting things with interesting products and ideas, and not about getting invited to all the right parties.”
What’s going on with you Hugh? Seriously. I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but recently you’ve become the king of generalizations. “Advertising can’t get blogs right, journos don’t understand people” etc etc
Do you really, honestly believe that all the people working in the media, working in marketing are blind and deaf?
No Andreas, but I think both professions are awash with hacks. Lucky professions.
Not really related to the article, but Hugh, your cartoons never cease to express what’s going on inside my mind at any given moment. Today’s (it may be an older one, I’m not sure) just made the cut as one of my favorites.
Thanks Scotty,
That’s an older one. New ones tend to get published all by themselves, without any written commentary. I repost the older ones to jazz up my written commentary.
This last year I haven’t been posting new cartoons often enough. Mainly becasue I’m drawing a lot less. Mainly becasue I’m so busy these days. It’s hard doing everything.
I don’t have a problem with reposting the cartoons. It allows people to see work they might have missed earlier.
YES YES YES ! — great post.. see you soon
Every profession is awash with hacks. (See also Sturgeon’s Law: 90% of everything is crap.)
Most of the people pointing out similarities to the Internet bubble now were busy driving the hype wagon back in 1999. When those same people start talking about how wonderful blogs are, that’s when we’ll know the bubble is about to burst.
For me, blogs aren’t about changing the revenue system and making money, but the functionality of communication. The blogs I’ve set up for clients have enabled a lot of easy conversations, whereas before it was difficult, needed a web master or a degree, and was hard to update. Now, it’s completely opposite
Blog have peaked?!?
I am not shocked to hear yet another journalist saying blogs are a bad thing or are going away
I read the entire article, and I think he hit you where you live. He said people launching blogs as business ventures now will make “journalist money, not Wall Street money.” Let us know, Hugh, when you’ve made anywhere near as much from your blog as Calacanis did from Engadget. Until then, he’s right and you’re wrong.
Read Tom Feremski recently Hugh? ex-FT…3 mill page views per month…
Fred: Check your facts…how much did Jason actually make? Look it up. BTW — do you think there’s only ONE blog business model?
Good piece in the FT recently re the rise of blogging… read?
dear fred, watz this biz about “you are right and I’m wrong” thingy? If u think abt it enough, think slow… its more about wat works and wat dun. I’ve juz got started and I think that blogging is great and for many reasons I dun wanna flood this place with… it will be here to stay. When i read msn, yahoo, or a newspaper, or those damn tabloids, I see companies & turmoil. When I read gapingvoid, I see a man who is true to himself and at peace with himself. Its peaceful here. Sometimes chaotic but peaceful. And for a man who can attain this — getting paid living life. Please don’t try to take this away from him — you’re killing yourself.
Your point about “second-hand sources” is very true. I think it’s less about party invitations, though, and more about the fact that most reporters (even business reporters) don’t understand business very well. I believe it was Forbes who stated a while back that something like 70 percent of US business reporters were unable to read a balance sheet. That’s uh — not so good.
For more MSM blog-bashing, see Trevor Butterworth’s piece in this weekend’s Financial Times. They’ve dedicated a ton of space to it.
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/384be1be-9eb1-11da-ba48-0000779e2340.html
Missing the point of blogs
Slate is talking Twilight of the Blogs. Apparently, “blogs have peaked.” Well, sorry, Slate but you’re wrong. Like many others who are constantly analyzing blogs, the on-line pub just flat misses the point (and power) of blogging…
Gratuitous Metablogging
I usually try to avoid the whole “blogging about blogging” thing, but there are a couple of good things that have popped through in the last couple of days that may be worth a look, if you’re into that sort