One of the bloggers/photographers I follow is Om Malik. He recently posted an article titled Future Of Media – A Quick Reality Check that I found interesting.
I started my blog back when blogs were ‘cool’ as a way to share my written thoughts as well as my photographs. More often than not, my posts were a way for me to clarify my own thoughts on a subject, rather than just writing for writing’s sake. It sort of morphed into – for me at least – an alternative to social media. Yeah, I’m on Facebook (sort of) and Instagram (sort of) and I have a Twitter account that I never look at. But mostly I have this blog. And while I appreciate every person who comes and looks, especially those who take the time to leave thoughtful comments, I would probably do it even if no one visited or commented. I suppose it is my version of a journal, although one that anybody can read.
The passage in Malik’s post that I found especially valuable is the one where he talks – referencing still another article on the subject – about the distinction between blogging and social media:
Marc Weidenbaum, a music enthusiast and founder of Disquiet.com, expertly captures the distinction between blogs and social. “Social media expects feedback (not just comments, but likes and follows),” he writes. “Blogs are you getting your ideas down; feedback is a byproduct, not a goal.” In other words, one is a performance for an audience, while the other is highly personal, though others may end up finding it interesting. Weidenbaum also admirably points out the difference between blogs and all the suddenly ubiquitous newsletters. “And newsletters = broadcasting,” he says. “Blogging is different.”
Feedback is a byproduct, not a goal. I don’t write for Likes or Hearts or Thumbs-up, just for me. I post on Instagram, and while I don’t obsess over whether anyone “Likes” my photos or not, it’s nice when they do. And a few of the people who follow my Instagram will never read my blog. And that’s OK.
Just last night I had someone tell me, “I see your photos (on Instagram) from all these far-off places but never know where you are.” I explained that I always add the location, you just need to look at the text. And he replied “well, I just look at the pictures, I don’t bother reading anything.” Well, OK then. That’s how people use social media, and that guy will never read my blog. But I love him anyway. 🙂
Bullseye! My blog started as a ‘photoblog’ where my images were the point. Then I started just journalling with a pretty picture as a header. Just rambling thoughts (I used to call it Visual Ramblings) that may or may not have photographic intent; but it was a space for me that others could come across, like finding a penny on the sidewalk.
Again, thanks for the SW photos.
Thanks, Joe. We all have our rationale for doing what we do. Sometimes we ramble – that’s actually a good title! 😉 I love the analogy of the “penny on the sidewalk.” Always worth stopping and picking up!
Don’t stop sharing photos and commentary of your travels! Have a great day
Not to worry, Dottie! I’ll not likely run out of photos or words any time soon!
I agree. I started blogging to post my images, then began to add content and now use it as a community (social media). Over the years I have begun to share more words, whether mine or others, and find it rewarding for my own soul. It is a form of journaling and at times I have posted from my personal journal. I am not on Facebook or Instagram but do visit Twitter every day for my images and poetry fix.
I also enjoy those who I follow on my blog feeder, their images and what they write. Several have become friends whom I’ve met.
I think the best thing about our blogs is the little “community” we’ve built up over the years. Some members (for lack of a better word) come and go, we occasionally add one or two, and a few observe but remain silent. It’s the sharing of original content – both written and visual – without judgement but with thoughtful commentary that makes it satisfying.
Great commentary Tom. So many people that use social media only use it superficially at best. Like you mentioned, some only look at the pictures. To some editors delight I’m sure (sarcasm) – many people comment or like articles they haven’t read. Given the popularity of IG or TikTok and the like – I am not sure what that says about future generations of readers. I suppose I am guilty sometimes of just looking at the pictures also. And do enjoy the photos within this post.
I suppose I enjoy blogs still because they get me away from the algorithms feeding things to me. I have them bookmarked for the ones I visit and occasionally add from there. But eventually, the list becomes too much to keep upon. Often I’ll fall behind and catch up in a sweep.
I’ve cleaned out my RSS feeder more than once to start again with only those I read regularly. Too often I’d be adding sites like a kid in a candy shop and then find I don’t read any of them beyond that initial post. So, I prune and trim until I’m at a manageable level. I’m at 10 now which is do-able unless you all decide to write something on the same day 🙂
Wow, 10? I have 35 sources just in my Photography section! I think I’m overdue for a purge of my own, but I’m not sure I could get down to 10. I’ll admit, though, to skimming titles and skipping all but the articles that appear most interesting.
Glad to know that I’m one of the 10, however! 🙂
Thank you, Mark. The sharing of articles that the sharer hasn’t (apparently) bothered to read are, in my opinion, the core problem of social media. Yes, there is stuff on there that probably shouldn’t be, but the mindless “pass it on” mentality is a problem. I wonder if people would feel differently if they understood the implications of what they share.
Interesting your comment about algorithms. Kathy & I share my Facebook page, but she sees completely different things than I see, even though it is one account. Weird. I’ve recently come to realize how the algorithms of music services such as Spotify artificially limit my exposure to new music by constantly feeding me stuff similar to what I’ve already listened to. I love jazz especially, but was realizing how I never heard anything new. So I’ve recently started trying to force the issue by digging into the “people who like this person also like these people” feature to the point where I’m so far removed from the original I start hearing new things.
Many times I have to try to bypass the algorithms manually. I use either the recent posts feed or favorites, or often I just have to manually click on someone’s profile in my friends list to find out they have been posting a lot of things that were never shown to me.
In some respects, I get the purpose of the algorithms – they want to feed you stuff that you interact with the most, because there is just too much to keep up with. Perhaps similar with the music feeds. It’s just easier to feed you what you like, which results perhaps in more listens, which equals more money. Same way with ads, why serve you an ad for something you likely have no interest in? It’s all a strange balancing game, especially if you want to step outside what you normally see.