Blogging Is Here To Stay

Yesterday, a Singapore Straits Times journalist wrote that "Blogging is so dated... now you twitter".

I am not sure if the above link works for non-subscribers to the Straits Times, so I am reproducing part of his article here.

"BLOGGING is so last year.

Now, the latest rage among netizens is the Internet form of SMS, using tools such as Twitter or Plurk to give friends an instant update on their lives, on subjects ranging from good makan places to news events.

According to research firm Hitwise, blogging traffic slowed last year, while the usage of Twitter and Plurk has exploded.

The number of Singaporean users visiting and using Twitter's site jumped 602 per cent between January last year and last month, said Hitwise, which does not reveal absolute figures."

The reporter went on to interview 2 undergraduates who went on and on about how great Twitter was.

There are two points I want to make here.

One is that the purposes of blogging and twittering are not the same. Those who blog for the purpose of keeping friends and family updated (I call them social bloggers) may want to switch to twittering or social networking sites. I agree that these could be more effective channels, especially for those who are finger-tied (as opposed to tongue-tied) when fingers come into contact with the keyboard. Twittering is also very suitable for those who are always in a rush, and I know a lot of young people who are like that.

But there are many others who blog for other reasons - for example, there are the serious bloggers who want to share their thoughts with the general public - in this case, the growing community of netizens - and have nowhere to publish them, save the internet, via a blog. Many of these succeeded in influencing opinions, as politicians in many countries can attest to. If blogging is dead, I think the politicians will be the first to cheer.

So, no, I do not think that blogging is dead or dated. But for the casual blogger, like me, it does take considerable motivation and time. But a twitter will not do the trick for me. I have problems keeping my posts short!

The other point I want to highlight is how statistics can pull the wool over one's eyes. First of all, I would like to ask what is the volume of blogging traffic compared to twittering traffic today. We all know a low base will distort numbers when we talk about percentage rise, so a phenomenal rise of 600+% is nothing to shout about if the base is low, and I believe it is. Without announcing absolute numbers, the researcher loses credibility. Is it deliberately trying to create a story - that might be true - but not unexpected?

I would also like to ask who commissioned the research firm, Hitwise, to conduct the research. Research firms know on which side their bread is buttered.

By the way, I am not against twittering... in fact, I have a dormant twitter account. It just does not serve my needs.