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MEDIA | Noah Brier

Irregularity

How not writing regularly actually creates a better final product.

December 3, 2007 | RSS | EMAIL | PRINT | 7 COMMENTS

I was having a conversation last week with my friend Jonathan (sadly blogless) about the state of news. The conversation went in a bunch of different directions, but the one I've been meaning to write about is the importance of RSS. Not so much the technology, but the effect it's had. The most important of these effects is showing the world the power of an irregular news cycle: Instead of coming out with new stories based on some deadline an editor came up with, most blogs publish whenever they damn well please. They can do this because they know that many of their readers have subscribed to the site and will receive updates whenever they come out. (For the record, I know that RSS adoption is still quite low. My point with this isn't so much about the actual subscriptions, but rather how the advantages of publishing this way will eventually spill over into the mainstream.)

Blogs, unlike newspapers and magazines, don't have to fill pages on a regular basis. If I don't write here daily I see no drop in readership (in fact, I often see a rise if I take a week off . . . but that's another story). That means, unlike newspapers and other media outlets, I don't ever have to create news. The vast majority of my readers are subscribed and they (you) will receive my writing when it happens thanks to RSS (which is the technology behind the email subscription as well in case you're wondering).

I guess in reality this is just a continuation of my "Nothing to Lose" piece (recap: big media fighting bloggers is kind of like fighting the crazy guy in the bar who doesn't care about getting hurt). My motivation is fundamentally different than a media outlet. I don't care about time-on-site or pageviews, I just want to put out consistently interesting information so that I can attract as much feedback as possible on my ideas.

Not really sure where else to go with all this, just though it was something worth throwing out there.

While I'm on the subject, here are some other thoughts I have on the news:

  • I've been quoting this Virtual Economics entry on the power of satirical news quite a bit lately. The basic idea is that "To overcome rational ignorance ["rational ignorance tells us that our votes can't possibly affect the outcome of an election"] we need more Onions, more Daily Shows, more Sunday Sports - diverse cultural forms that treat the news as entertainment, reach every section of society and reward individuals for taking the trouble to keep themselves informed." As Seamus writes early in the entry, that's because "Unless you're actually a politician or a lobbyist, knowledge of current affairs is pure indulgence. It follows that the people who know about the news are following it for fun."
  • I really do believe that a look at the front page of The Onion gives you a better idea of what's important in the world than just about any other publication.
  • We mostly read news for the social currency it offers us (you don't want to be on Wall Street and not have read the front page of The Journal). With that in mind I think we'll see more and more pre-chewed news like Talking Points on Current TV.(video below)

Okay, that's it for now. Have a good Monday.

Updates (12/2/07): In retrospect, this episode of Talking Points is really not any good. The idea behind it ("Knowing about current events isn't nearly as important as appearing to know about them"), however, is the part I really dig.


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COMMENTS

1David Castillo

Hey Noah, Great Post. I especially like the section you cited from the Virtual economics blog. I think the concept of "edutainment" (If I can borrow from blastmaster KRS ONE) is very important to how people can inform themselves outside of what are considered "legitimate" news sources.

I personally had most of my political conciousness molded by punk rock/hardcore music of the 90's. I would easily say that I learned more from Fugazi than I did from Peter Jennings. So although you can see the political front lines being duked out on Fox or CNN, why would I watch it? it's boring. Yet, I could go to my room and want to dissect a whole Fugazi CD cause they made things exciting. In fact, those records made great cases for me to turn off the tv.

Once people recognize that the theatre of politics spills into so may other venues that are not considered "legitimate" or "serious" - thats where you can capture people's attention in often unexpected places. For example, is there a reason why so many heavy political topics are debated in popular cartoons? (South Park, Family Guy, Etc.)In these cartoons the rewards for the viewer are doubled - fun and informative. For the creators, it is a great way to slip under the radar of censorship. Clicking over to C-span now becomes the biggest bum out ever.

In terms of music and it being a trojan horse for political messages overtly and covertly, Ian Svenonious wrote a great essay called, "The responsibility of rock and roll". Worth a read.

December 3, 2007

2Noah Brier

David, great points. I can't believe I forgot to mention South Park . . . That's so right on.

December 3, 2007

3David Castillo

For any interested parties, Douglas Rushkoff has a great chapter in his book Media Virus on what is typically considered "children's" television programming and subversion. After reading it I definitely revisited some of my fav cartoons growing up and was blown away by how loaded they were.

December 3, 2007

4Ben

I think the Virtual Economics post can be applied across the board, not just to satirical news. Even traditional media outlets are buying into the "reward individuals for taking the trouble to keep themselves informed."

That is, it seems that these days we can turn to traditional media not just to get the news (keeping informed), but for analysis and advocacy that gives big name credibility to our beliefs (the reward). If I'm a Democrat, I can watch CBS. If I'm a Republican, I can watch Fox. If I'm fed up with both parties, I can watch Lou Dobbs.

Seems to be some link here to the long tail and everything being customized...but I'll let Mr Brier make those connections.

December 3, 2007

5Seni Thomas

Good stuff. When I first launched my blog not long ago I felt the inherent need to post 1-2 articles up per day, but now I have been taking my time to better develop ideas and stay away from news regurgitation - reposts of other content without significant commentary.

December 3, 2007

6Erin

Great thoughts Noah; High Five. I haven't given the issue of news/ newsworthiness/ national/international current affairs the attention it deserves. I know things are "a little off" in the world of news in a traditional-media sense but have not challenged myself to think through why it's so distant and removed.

I think your pulled quote from Virtual Economics is spot on (i.e. reasons for the Onion and Daily Show being so popular) and "knowledge of current affairs is pure indulgence" is very interesting. "We read news for the social currency it offers us." Shit, you're reading us all like books.

But what to do? Be irregular? Subscribe to RSS? These are choices the receivers of information can make on how to get their updates. What are the managers of the information thinking these days? We've all read articles here and there about media conglomerates being worried about how to keep up with current trends in media consumption so what's their plan? And, are they reading your blog? :)

Traditional media - the ones responsible for 'news' as we know it have many barriers to the functional, user-friendly, enjoyed news realm: 1) they're 'traditional' 2)they have to straddle 4-5 generations, catering more to the older gen. to maintain readership levels and stay in business 3) somehow get America (I'm keeping it a national level) to Take Their Time Back, convenience reigns supreme and taking the time to read the paper or watch the news is not time people have 4) make the world and its news relevant to people like exercise or watching your alcohol intake is relevant.

Thanks for making me think about this. Keep up the good blog work. :)

December 4, 2007

7Tangerine Toad

Actually, Noah, I think it depends on what you're blogging about.

You write a thought leadership blog (for lack of a better word) on whatever topic moves you that day.

But there are many blogs that rely on timeliness or feeding the gossip-hungry masses.

Even in ad blogs, I was advised early on by a leading ad blogger, that the secret to his success was daily postings, even on weekends.

I've tried to follow his advice, as much as possible. When I don't have time for something thoughtful, I have the option of posting a link to a commercial or video I really like (plus to focusing on the ad industry)

December 6, 2007