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[blogs] Bloggers of the Left, Unite! — New Stateman article on the supposed right-wing hijacking of weblogging … ‘…this is the blogger’s way: like raptors, they hunt in packs, gain momentum, pick enemies, vent spleen, and never, ever, hold back. These blogs do not have large direct readerships: InstaPundit clocks only 40,000 readers a day. But many readers run their own blogs; others are political or media professionals. So a growing community is aware of whatever most irritated Sullivan today. This in turn creates what the legal theorist Cass Sunstein calls “cybercascades”, reaching millions of readers with ideas, in this case associated almost exclusively with the right. They are democratic dynamite: private networks of information, unchecked by sensible debate.’ [via Haddock]

The Right-Wing Takeover of Blogs

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 2nd, 2002 at 2:43 pm and is filed under Blogs, Politics.

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7 Comments

Strange. I’ve long held the opinion (based on perception rather than any form of analysis) the blogging, especially British blogging, is generally centrist or left wing.
Maybe someone needs to conduct a proper survey of this, rather than base statements on supposition, opinion or conjecture.

I’d have said the same – and not just of British blogging. Most of it seems motivated by the same libertarian ideals which drove the internet in the first place.

I certainly doubt that ‘Stephen Pollard, the only British political blogger on the left’ was a very thoroughly-researched description.

What notable UK political weblogs are out there?

Is there a UK Instapundit? (A niche waiting to be filled?)

Arse – I can’t believe I posted this to haddock before I’d even had a chance to write about it myself. And now Darren’s got there first :o)

It would be fascinating to do a couple of systematic surveys. I’m going to talk to Cal…

Anwering my own question… got one, The Edge of England’s Sword.

Looks strongly influenced by Instapundit / Warblogging (note the quote from Glenn Reynolds at the top of the page).

“indeed, there are precious few left-wing blogs at all”

Oh really? I can think of at least two dozen or so off the top of my head. Who really cares what Andrew Sullivan, Glenn Reynolds or their myriad of imitators has to say anyway? I guess people who religiously watch Fox News Network or listen to Rush Limbaugh might, but I certainly don’t pay any attention to them. They’re both boring self absorbed egoists who enjoy ad hominem attacks and peddling a bunch of easy answers. This also applies to a fair number of the purely political weblogs on the left as well.

The most ludicrous thing about the warblogging “phenomenon” is that only media pundits, not the guy on the street, seem to have heard of it.

If I asked ten random people in my town what a warblog was, I’m certain than not one of them would have the slightest idea what I was talking about.

The supposed influence of weblogs is just as much nonsense as those who claimed that the internet and the new economy would turn the world into a cyber-utopia.

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