Blogging Phenomenon

A weblog otherwise known as a blog is defined as a website typically handled by one person or a few people who journals their thoughts regarding a particular subject (Cass 2004). Blogs have become a useful tool to share information with the public in our era. 

Blogosphere

In Technorati's State of Blogosphere 2010 report which studies new trends and development in the blogosphere, the number of bloggers has increased in growth.

Source: (Technorati.com, 2010)

There are four different categories of bloggers (Sobel 2010) : -

1. Hobbyists: The backbone of the blogosphere, they blog as merely a hobby and have 64% of respondents.

2. Part-timers: Devote significant amount of time to blogging, also earn an income through blogging. They represent 13% of the blogosphere.

3. Corporates: Bloggers who blog full-time for a company or an organization, they most likely have worked in traditional media prior to blogging. They represent only 1% of the blogosphere.

4.Self-employeds: Bloggers who blog full-time or occasionally for their own company. Some say they have a blog related to their company, some say the blog is their company and so forth. They represent 21% in the blogosphere.

Source: (Technorati.com, 2010)

Blogging benefits

In the Malaysian blogosphere, one blogging benefit trend that is quite significant is political blogging. Political blogs function as a space for the public to practice their freedom of speech regarding the political happenings in the country. Based on (Azizuddin 2009), opposition leaders and civil society activists are avid political bloggers because they have different opinions or oppose the government. They share their true views on these blogs; which is good for democracy and public interest. Some Malaysian political blogs include Lim Kit Siang's blog, Anwar Ibrahim's blog and Hannah Yeoh's blog.

References: 

1. Cass, J 2004, 'Blog, Weblog Definition', TypePad.com, 16 June, viewed 17 August 2011 <http://pr.typepad.com/pr_communications/2004/06/blog_weblog_def.html>.

2. Sobel, J 2010, State of the Blogosphere 2010 Introduction - page 2, Technorati, viewed 17 August 2011,

<http://technorati.com/blogging/article/state-of-the-blogosphere-2010-introduction/page-2/>.

3. Gaman, 2007, 50 Most Influential Blogs in Malaysia, Sabahan, viewed 17 August 2011,

<http://www.sabahan.com/2007/02/06/50-most-influential-blogs-in-malaysia/>.


4. Azizudin, M 2009, 'The Emergence of New Politics in Malaysia: From Consociational to Deliberative Democracy', Taiwan Journal of Democracy, vol. 5, no. 2, viewed 22 August 2011, <http://www.tfd.org.tw/docs/dj0502/097-126%20Mohd%20Azizuddin.pdf>.