Gutenberg 2.0

Toastmaster Speech #6

Today I want to talk to you about blogging. You've probably heard about it on the radio or television. You may even be a blogger yourself. Anyone can do it. It doesn't require any special skills or knowledge and costs little or nothing to produce. The only thing you need is access to the Internet and something to say.

What's a blog? That's not a real word, is it? According to Merriam-Webster it is. The word blog is short for web log, a journal that you publish on the World Wide Web. What can you put in a blog? What is your favorite animal? Bloggable. What did you do this weekend? Very bloggable. The truth is you can write anything in your blog. My blog has movie reviews, political rants, even a haiku about the video game DOOM³.

What is so special about blogging and why is everyone talking about it? Well, it has caused a revolution of sorts. A revolution no one saw coming. Around 1450, Johannes Gutenberg invented movable type and with it mass media. Since that time, only a select few could publish their work. Most media outlets today are huge corporations with vast resources. The news, slick and polished, is delivered by celebrity journalists. But what about the average Joe? Could he possibly compete with the big dogs? It turns out he can.

After September 11^th, some bloggers cried out in favor of the war with Iraq. The most notable was Instapundit, a blog created by University of Tennessee law professor Glenn Reynolds. Joshua Marshall, with his Talking Points Memo, influenced the fall of Trent Lott as Senate Majority leader after Lott's controversial statements about Senator Strom Thurmond. Dan Rather's doctored Bush memos were famously exposed by bloggers and lead to his resignation as anchor of the CBS evening news. One of the most influential bloggers, Andrew Sullivan, receives over 100,000 readers a day, more readers than he had subscribers when he was editor of The New Republic magazine.

What is revolutionary is that the average person can publish news and opinions worldwide-- instantly. By publishing regularly, with honesty and integrity, she can develop a reputation for journalism rivaling that of huge media conglomerates and their spokesmen. Technology makes it possible. Services such as blogger.com, livejournal.com and xanga.com offer free hosting and easy to use software, delivered straight to your web browser. If you can type, you can blog.

As powerful a medium as it is, most bloggers are not out to change the world. For most bloggers writing is a personal experience. Many blogs are simply electronic diaries. October 14^th, I ran into the nicest woman at the supermarket... or ...photos of Jonathan taking his first steps. People write about their vacations, publish poetry. Some have even published entire novels on their blogs.

As fun as blogs are to write, they are just as much fun to read. If you like politics, there are plenty of blogs to choose from, whether you be Democrat, Republican or Independent. One of my favorites is by Libertarian and Gulf War Vet, Eric Cowperthwaite, Eric Grumbles Before the Grave. On the opposite side of the spectrum are the absurd and bizarre. I highly recommend, Zapato Productions Intradimensional. Here you will learn the truth about black helicopters, the many uses of aluminum foil and that Belgium doesn't really exist. This has to be my favorite website of all time.

What can I say? Blogging is fun. It's cheap and easy to do. What we have to say is important. Blogs allow our voices to be heard around the world. The next time I turn on my television or radio and hear about blogging, I hope they are talking about you.