The Power of Blogging, Katrine Sorensen

One of the advantages of blogging for journalists is the exposure it creates. One of the important upsides is that it is possible to publish material without having to go through an editor; in fact, blogging can be considered a playground where writers can show off their talent, or as Megan Perras describes it in her blog post about citizen journalism: 'open mic night'. If used correctly, blogging could be opening the door to a job in the industry, just like a talented singer can be spotted at an open mic night. The independence makes it a very attractive medium for journalism students or young journalist since it can be very hard to get material published without any experience or contacts because it takes no prerequisites to write for a virtual audience. But what does it take to reach this virtual audience?

A good example of a career altering blog is Julie Powell's blog 'The Julie/Julia Project'. Powell was an aspiring but struggling writer who decided to start blogging about her attempt to cook her way through the culinary classic 'Mastering the Art of French Cooking' by Julia Child. The blog became immensely popular, newspapers and magazines wrote stories about Powell and her blog, she wrote a book about it, and, finally, a film was created recently based on the stories of Julie and Julia. The moral of the Julie Powell story: do not ignore blogging as a medium, writers cannot afford to underestimate the free publicity. Powell's blog cannot be scrutinized enough for techniques used to catch the interest of the public; in addition, a list of the most popular blogs (updated daily) can be viewed at Technorati's website for further inspiration to the ambitious blogger.

However, the blogger who pursues a career in professional writing will have to tread carefully into the realm of blogging; although blog writers have a level of freedom with style, content and use of language that they will never experience in the publishing industry, they will also have to rely on their own editing skills since no editor will examine their copy. One of the pitfalls of blogging is that all errors will be painfully obvious to all of cyberspace and hence potential employers. Therefore, getting into the habit of writing blogs and, in particular, editing blogs is very good practise for the future. Especially with the increased pressure on the editors in the news industry, journalists will need the ability to edit their work thoroughly, efficiently, and swiftly. And what better skill is there to show off on your blog than amazing editing abilities?

Note: image from blog.sherweb.com.