Bloggers, Awards, and the Main Stream Media

Bloggers' awards are an important way to validate information available on the internet. But that begs the question. Are blogs the best way to get information?

Yesterday's TVO (TVOntario) guest Andrew Keen doesn't seem to think so. His point is that professional media or Main Stream Media (MSM), like newspapers and television, spend time and research in order to produce their information. Blogs are the product of amateurs and not to be really trusted, is his conclusion.

But, it is interesting that some of the most important stories on the MSM were broken by bloggers. And one of the the US' most unlikely candidates, Ron Paul, is making headways because of the internet.

The 2007 Weblog Awards have given out their prizes according to categories. This shows you just how varied bloggers are, and that they can't really be put in a convenient niche of "amateurs". A gossip blog hardly rates the same as a technology blog.

There is a tendency, I agree, for blogs to be pop-culture oriented. There is no "Arts Blog" category in the Weblog Awards, and the Music Blogs finalists are all pop or rock. But, that just happens to be the choices that the Weblog Awards committee chose. Of course all those blogs are out there, but they now appear on a third tier - MSM, MSB (Main Stream Bloggers) and The Rest. But, unlike CBC or TVO, you don't have to wait for the media channel to bring you your favorite story, you can find them just as well yourself.

Still, like my previous post, video didn't kill radio, and blogs aren't going to replace MSM too soon. They just provide the choice and alternate interaction that makes news, hobbies, businesses, and any subject that you fancy, more interesting.