A curious loop of commentary among tech bloggers has cropped up over the past few days, and it centers on the degree of respect that tech bloggers get from PR strategists and media 1.0 writers. First, former Washington Post-writer-turned-public-policy-analyst Chris Stern made a reference in an op-ed piece to the writings of “obscure” bloggers on the topic of network neutrality.
This sparked outrage among the affected bloggers. Jeff Pulver wrote in his blog
Until now, it is Christopher Stern who has been the “Obscure Analyst” who decided to share his thoughts on the battle of Net Neutrality. The debate on Net Neutrality will continue in the Blogosphere, with (or without) the help of the mainstream press.
Jeff was taking up the sentiment expressed by Om Malik in his blog:
Still, I didn’t care much for Stern’s comment, “But lately the issue, a matter of heated debate on obscure blogs and among analysts like me, has begun to attract the attention of the mainstream press.” Which obscure blogs is he talking about? Jeff Pulver is not obscure, neither is Doc Searls. Obscure blogs, were doing the job of Washington Post, a great newspaper that’s a (proverbial) stone’s throw from FCC.
Now, Michael Arrington is criticizing VoIP start-up Tello’s PR strategy, in part because the company has apparently overlooked the blogosphere.
Second, they’ve obviously decided that the bloggers don’t matter much. Om Malik and Alec Saunders took the time to write about them. Even though they each command a large and very relevant audience, Tello didn’t bother to list either of them on the news page. Lots of other bloggers wrote about Tello too (including our own MobileCrunch), but were not mentioned. Companies that don’t embrace bloggers tend to become attacked by bloggers. Companies that embrace bloggers, and thank them, get lots and lots of love.
Funny thing is, Tello is a venture by none other than…Jeff Pulver, who two days earlier was standing up for the blogosphere. And I don’t think that Tello really overlooked the blogosphere — Jeff took the time to acknowledge all the bloggers who wrote about Tello.
All this complaining really is a symptom of the tech blogosphere’s inferiority complex, which is rooted in the fact that tech bloggers, despite often being ahead of the curve and better informed than traditional media, still rank second among traditional print editors and PR muffins. It’s just a form of laziness and resistance to change among a lot of print editors and myopia among the PR people. But, that’s the way it is.
Cynthia Brumfield at 10:21 AM|Comments(3)
In terms of importance, a writer is only as important as those who read them. If my customers never are affected by their writings, then I wouldn't worry all that much about what they write. If either directly or indirectly, my customers end up reading their views, then I had better be aware of them.
I am with a consulting company that works with large tech companies, and I would imagine that my clients may pay attention to blogs. I also like reading certain blogs to get an idea of what stories might be coming down the path.
Mainstream media is great, but most tech topics really are not nor will ever be ready for prime time.
Ask the guy on the street who Om Malik is, and you will probably get a blank stare. Om writes for Business 2.0, which the average Joe has probably never heard of. Ask a communications executive who Om Malik is, and you will probably get a pretty good answer.
The mainstream media doesn't typically write about technology, they write about what technology will do for consumers, what benefits the mass market will see. I understand that the technology enables those benefits, but people don't care why something works, just that it works.
For the mainstream media (USA Today, Washington Post, even mostly the Wall Street Journal,) Jeff Pulver and most bloggers would be obscure. Being obscure isn't all that bad a thing, at least you don't have to sign autographs.
Posted by: Patrick Mullen at January 26, 2006 3:26 PM
I agree with Michael Arrington, we were overlooked and the blame goes to the PR team. I circumvented all that yesterday, and had a long talk with the Tello CEO and learned so much and most of it proves the traditional media doesn't get it, and sometimes gets it wrong.
Om was briefed, I wasn't. Now I've been and like Om and Alec, I have a much clearer understanding.
If this was the first time something like this had happened, I'd not be concerned, but the issue is that PR people don't take the time to learn who matters and why they matter to the eco-system.
As the designer/creator of the Nokia Blogger Relations Program, and a blogger, and a PR guy it takes more than a budget to get the word out. In the case of Tello, they got the Forbes and WSJ's of the world to write about them. Was it all correct? No. Did it create confusion in the minds of the media, judging by emails and calls I received from others in the media and analyst world, yes. Could I answer their questions with authority? No. I wasn't briefed before yesterday and now the story is old news.
Posted by: Andy Abramson at January 25, 2006 1:23 PM
Well framed, and fair.
I like him sincerely, but I'm wondering, since when isn't Om Malik part of the mainstream media? And to some degree isn't the attention these bloggers crave partially driven from wanting blog ad revenue and a desire for personal name recognition?
These blogs are used for career and product "pimping", and that's a fuzzy line point I don't see much discussion of. While they should be seriously involved, I'm not sure they deserve to be on the top tier of the discussion.
While it's often justified, I think this "blogosphere vs. mainstream media" is quite a lot of ego-driven hyperbole.
Om Malik and Jeff Pulver ARE obscure when viewing this discussion from the perspective of Joe Public, which from where this debate largely matters.
Posted by: Karl at January 24, 2006 3:07 PM
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