This is the companion blog to “The Rough Guide to Blogging,” available now (Fall 2006).
ESPN, always willing to embrace the newest technologies to spread sport scores and opinions to fans everywhere has a well organized page for their podcasts which range in subject matter from the upcoming NFL draft to poker related shows.
US News & World Report has an article about graduate students who blog in their recent Grad Schools 2007 issue. Grad school scholars are embracing blogs as a way to connect with each other, to hold community conversations, and simply to vent.
The article also addresses the darker side of academic blogging, profiling a professor who believes his blog played a role in his being denied tenure.
A new blog directory recently launched: Bloggapedia. Right now, Bloggapedia has only registered a handful of blogs but in time, it could be worth watching as it seems set up to be a comprehensive and useful guide to the Blogosphere.
“The idea behind Bloggapedia is a simple one: to provide a three-level category structure, as specific as necessary, to allow people to find exactly what they’re looking for when they search for blogs.Bloggers can add and categorize their own blogs, and visitors can suggest blogs for categorization. We provide forums to network with other bloggers, tools and resources for blogging, and, of course, our own Bloggapedia blog. There’s a search function to allow visitors to find a specific blog, and even rate it.”
Zeyad (of HealingIraq.blogspot.com), an Iraqi dentist and blogger, has been accepted by CUNY’s Graduate School of Journalism. The problem however is that in order to get his student visa, he must show financial support for the year and a half that he will be here. Jeff Jarvis of BuzzMachine.com is organizing a donation campaign for the pioneering Iraqi blogger.
A listing of the New York Times articles most frequently linked to by bloggers. Organized to show the last 3 days, last 7 days, or the last 30 days.
Also the link to the Times’ most e-mailed articles.
Now in its second season, The Travel Channel’s 5 Takes follows five travelers around the Pacific Rim. What makes this show supremely interesting is how it uses the Internet as a vital component of the viewer experience. Visitors to the 5 Takes site are also given the chance to direct the TJs (travel journalists) on where to go in each location that they visit, creating a truly interactive experience. Each of the TJs are armed with camcorders and laptops. With these tools they are responsible for independently documentating their trip. The TJs are tasked with blogging on a daily basis and maintaining a weekly videolog.
The blogs aren’t just a few trite paragraphs about the joys of traveling. They are well-composed detailed (at times rambly) reports of the day’s activities. The videologs are often amusing and highly personable — and does a great job of showcasing what vlogs can do as part of a show.
Since the second season has just started, the blogs and vlogs are sure to pick up in intensity and adventure. Be sure to catch the real “Road Rules” and see where the future of television might be headed.
“This second wave approach was first tried in a groundbreaking series for The Travel Channel called 5 Takes Europe. In a remarkable series of 8 hours, 5 young filmmakers were sent to Europe for the summer. They were accompanied by a Rosenblum production crew of shooter/editors using small hand-held HD cameras and laptop edits. They edited as they shot.
A conventional hour long cable reality/documentary show might take 18-20 weeks to produce. For 5 Takes, each hour was produced in an astonishing 6 days.The budgetary ramifications are obvious, but the technique also gave a far greater degree of control over the production.
The greatest implications, however were for the Internet. Now it was possible to create websites that were truly interactive. One might blog/vlog on a website related to the show on Tuesday and see the results on the air on Saturday. We had created a format called ‘Nearly Live’, and at a very low cost.”
-Rosenblum Associates-