Why start a news blog?

Posted by Jami G. in Blogging on 09 17th, 2008 | one response

First things first.

Why I launched a news blog:

I decided to start writing a blog that focused on world and national news after I returned home from a tour of duty in Iraq. Often times, personal experiences are a catalyst for big decisions. Being sent overseas with the military was my motivation.

Before I was deployed with the military, I vaguely took notice of current events. It’s when things turned personal did I start to notice how world events were directly affecting me. I decided then to try and understand why these things were happening in my life as it related to current events. It was both a conscious decision to understand why I was deployed to Iraq and also a desire to understand how to make a difference in the world as a whole.

Most successful news blogs emerge from personal stories like these. For example, the wildly successful liberal news blog Daily Kos was launched after its founder, Markos Moulitsas, returned from being stationed in Germany with the U.S. Army. Similarly, the equally accomplished conservative blogger Charles Johnson launched his popular news site, Little Green Footballs, after the September 11th attacks.

What do we all have in common? A personal event was the driving motivation to launch a news blog.

The Political is Personal:

There’s a famous quote by Carol Hanisch that I’m constantly reminded of when scanning the news: “The personal is political”. While the quote was originally meant for the feminist movement of the 1960’s, I made a little modification to suit my needs: The Political is Personal.

The stories that are coming down the pipelines of media outlets are more than events happening on the other side of the world or the other side of the country. It’s too easy to disregard news as something someone else should be concerned about. We have to remember that the news is being reported for you, by you, and with your life in mind.

Your life is directly affected by what’s reported by media outlets and it’s your responsibility to take a personal interest in it.

Why you shouldn’t start a news blog:

Money should be your last motivation.

There are some pretty awful news blogs out there and it’s simply because the author gives the impression that they’re more interested in making a buck than giving an opinion. People who read the news are some of the most adept and astute readers in the blogosphere. If you post from your heart and not from your wallet, people will take notice.

The honest truth is that there are thousands of news blogs. Opinion blogs. Aggregate blogs. News forums. The one thing that makes a news blog stand out is passion for what the author believes in. It’s the authors personal motivation for writing a news blog, not his/her motivation to make money, that will push their blog above the others.

Your opinion matters!

The most important reason to start a news blog is that your opinion really does matter. The worst action a person can take is no action. With the advancement of technology and the blogosphere, comes a new medium for your voice. A news blog not only expands your own personal knowledge of daily events but it helps others do the same.

You’re a teacher and a student all at once.

Let’s not forget that you’re exercising your freedom of speech. You have this gift, so use it.