Nothing really grabs the blogosphere as much as itself. It sounds like a Friday night crisis, but it's less lonely than that. Can we call it collective individualism? Should we employ Shakespeare, Nietzsche, or Jung when considering that 37% of bloggers say they are their own favorite subject? Does it change things if over half of them are anonymous?
WebProWorld
The authors of a new report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project called "Here's the breakdown:
37%: my life and experiences
11%: politics
7%: entertainment
6%: sports
5%: news
4%: technology
2%: religion and spirituality
"Some observers have suggested that blogging is nothing more than the next step in a burgeoning culture of narcissism and exhibitionism spurred by reality TV and other elements of the modern media environment," write Senior Research Specialist Amanda Lenhart and Associate Director Susannah Fox.
Yes, it is called MySpace isn't it? Me.com, anyone?
Narcissism nor Des Cartes is necessary for longest comment thread in history.
Christopher Keeton, a Christian ministry All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely Players;
They have their Exits and their Entrances,
And one man in his time playes many parts
-- Shakespeare, As You Like It
Only 8% said they do it for money. Fewer would probably be willing to romanticize it to the point that they "do it for love," but maybe our study authors shed light on the idea that it's not necessarily rampant malignant narcissism nor necessarily collective mass hysteria.
"But others contend that blogging promises a democratization of voices that can now bypass the institutional gatekeepers of mainstream media. This democratization is thought to have implications for the practice and business of journalism as well as the future of civic and political discourse."
So could the slings and arrows that Nietzsche bewailed of the pre-Web society be avoided though this new collective individualism?
"Madness is rare in individuals - but in groups, parties, nations, and ages it is the rule."
The optimist will believe we've struck a balance between the mob and the self. The cynic will no doubt recall the blog swarm and laugh. And the marketers and public relations professionals will understand and lament them both, as their audience expands in context, in complexity, but also in reactivity.
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