Comments on: Managing expectations http://www.buzzmachine.com/2006/04/16/managing-expectations/ by Jeff Jarvis Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:43:34 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Ken Layne http://www.buzzmachine.com/2006/04/16/managing-expectations/#comment-39928 Ken Layne Thu, 20 Apr 2006 07:14:41 +0000 http://www.buzzmachine.com/?p=1386#comment-39928 The blogs were fun for me, long ago. It was nice to see people behaving badly, throwing some real outrage at the 9/11 horror. But that was a long time ago, and the whole idea of 9/11 being some unknown surprise beast has been demolished about 1,000 times. (Had it really been about Saudi fundamentalist operations against American values or whatever, we sure as hell wouldn't be paying $3 per gallon for gasoline today.) So what happened? Followers of the U.S. political parties did what they always do. Libertarian-leaning small-government conservatives became Stalin-worshipping Big Government fanatics. Democrats wallowed in their failures, trying to convince themselves Al Gore was actually Jesus -- but a Jesus nobody actually liked. Ralph Nader secretly worked on new plans to make baseball bats out of soft nontoxic foam. China took all our manufacturing. Clinton and Bush Sr. made sweet love on the golf course. We all got suckered again. Blogs are the ribbon of shame on our idiocy. The blogs were fun for me, long ago. It was nice to see people behaving badly, throwing some real outrage at the 9/11 horror.

But that was a long time ago, and the whole idea of 9/11 being some unknown surprise beast has been demolished about 1,000 times. (Had it really been about Saudi fundamentalist operations against American values or whatever, we sure as hell wouldn’t be paying $3 per gallon for gasoline today.)

So what happened? Followers of the U.S. political parties did what they always do. Libertarian-leaning small-government conservatives became Stalin-worshipping Big Government fanatics. Democrats wallowed in their failures, trying to convince themselves Al Gore was actually Jesus — but a Jesus nobody actually liked. Ralph Nader secretly worked on new plans to make baseball bats out of soft nontoxic foam. China took all our manufacturing. Clinton and Bush Sr. made sweet love on the golf course.

We all got suckered again. Blogs are the ribbon of shame on our idiocy.

]]> By: Tex Lovera http://www.buzzmachine.com/2006/04/16/managing-expectations/#comment-39800 Tex Lovera Wed, 19 Apr 2006 17:07:49 +0000 http://www.buzzmachine.com/?p=1386#comment-39800 I'm with Trudy; I have not become disillusioned with blogs over the last few years. I have a few favorites (mostly conservative), but check out a few new ones every month. Jeff wrote: "I think the problem starts when people get big enough to think that they speak for others… just like newspaper editorial pages. The real blogger speaks only for himself or herself. It’s just people talking. " I agree somewhat, but for some bloggers who hit a nerve with enough folks, they become a "voice" for those people. I guess it works something like party affiliation. Now do some of these bloggers subsequently get big heads over their newfound popularity? Yep. But just because you're a popular blogger doesn't necessarily mean you BELIEVE you're the voice of your readers. But a "real blogger" may wind up speaking for others even as he "speaks for himself". To me, it's not mutually exclusive. I’m with Trudy; I have not become disillusioned with blogs over the last few years. I have a few favorites (mostly conservative), but check out a few new ones every month.

Jeff wrote:

“I think the problem starts when people get big enough to think that they speak for others… just like newspaper editorial pages. The real blogger speaks only for himself or herself. It’s just people talking. ”

I agree somewhat, but for some bloggers who hit a nerve with enough folks, they become a “voice” for those people. I guess it works something like party affiliation.

Now do some of these bloggers subsequently get big heads over their newfound popularity? Yep. But just because you’re a popular blogger doesn’t necessarily mean you BELIEVE you’re the voice of your readers.

But a “real blogger” may wind up speaking for others even as he “speaks for himself”. To me, it’s not mutually exclusive.

]]> By: From the Desert to the Sea… by John Stodder » Just People Talking http://www.buzzmachine.com/2006/04/16/managing-expectations/#comment-39282 From the Desert to the Sea… by John Stodder » Just People Talking Mon, 17 Apr 2006 19:18:47 +0000 http://www.buzzmachine.com/?p=1386#comment-39282 [...] Jeff Jarvis' Buzz Machine continues to impress me. Jarvis is a blog-evangelist, without question, and his focus is always on the future. But he's not overly impressed with himself, nor does he pump up the blog phenomenon to be more than it really is. In a post yesterday, he reports that some of the early, innovative bloggers he admires have become disappointed. [...] [...] Jeff Jarvis' Buzz Machine continues to impress me. Jarvis is a blog-evangelist, without question, and his focus is always on the future. But he's not overly impressed with himself, nor does he pump up the blog phenomenon to be more than it really is. In a post yesterday, he reports that some of the early, innovative bloggers he admires have become disappointed. [...]

]]> By: Marc’s Voice » Blog Archive » Monday morning observations http://www.buzzmachine.com/2006/04/16/managing-expectations/#comment-39279 Marc’s Voice » Blog Archive » Monday morning observations Mon, 17 Apr 2006 19:10:15 +0000 http://www.buzzmachine.com/?p=1386#comment-39279 [...] Great Jeff Jarvis piece on managing expectations. This could only have been written by someone who’s been through it, and seen the other side.  Life goes on - but why do so many people NOT learn from past mistakes?  One could run an entire consulting company JUST focusing on that!  This is why I never participate in the debate around “what is blogging” or even worse “what is identity?” [...] [...] Great Jeff Jarvis piece on managing expectations. This could only have been written by someone who’s been through it, and seen the other side.  Life goes on – but why do so many people NOT learn from past mistakes?  One could run an entire consulting company JUST focusing on that!  This is why I never participate in the debate around “what is blogging” or even worse “what is identity?” [...]

]]> By: Trudy W. Schuett http://www.buzzmachine.com/2006/04/16/managing-expectations/#comment-39237 Trudy W. Schuett Mon, 17 Apr 2006 13:50:17 +0000 http://www.buzzmachine.com/?p=1386#comment-39237 I’m not disillusioned at all about the way things are going, in fact, I just keep finding more things to get excited about. It's rather long for a comment, so I put my take on this here: http://desertlightjournal.blog-city.com/the_blogosphere_vs_human_nature.htm I’m not disillusioned at all about the way things are going, in fact, I just keep finding more things to get excited about. It’s rather long for a comment, so I put my take on this here:
http://desertlightjournal.blog-city.com/the_blogosphere_vs_human_nature.htm

]]> By: Undertoad http://www.buzzmachine.com/2006/04/16/managing-expectations/#comment-39236 Undertoad Mon, 17 Apr 2006 13:20:10 +0000 http://www.buzzmachine.com/?p=1386#comment-39236 This post and Bennett's post really speak to me. The blogosphere was really vivid and alive in 2002 and it brought a certain excitement that the old news could not possibly bring. It was more real, and people's voices came out and sung. Self-employed and highly interested in the new world, I could not help but dive in and read read read, many hours a day. Today my "top 10" list is not covering topics that are important to me, even though I spend much time looking for fresh new thinking. Then, my "top 10" was heavily weighted towards the state of the world. Sully, USS Clueless, a fiery political Lileks, a less knee-jerk LGF, Eject Eject Eject. I would happily eat up long essays that brought me the world in new ways I hadn't considered it before. Sometimes they were wrong but they were always smartly so. For me it was Schaivo that turned the tide foul. My previously favorite thinkers found it the Most Important Thing In The World. I found it to be nonsense. I realize it's only opinion and that if I thought it was Important the bloggers voices would still seem essential. The commenters still felt it was essential. But something was lost. Today the top 10 is more like: Boing Boing (web/tech/culture oddity), A List Of Things Thrown Five Minutes Ago (pop culture), Kausfiles, Gizmowatch, Insty, Michael Totten. Mostly not state-of-the-world, most of the politics is interesting non-partisan analysis, more about fun. This post and Bennett’s post really speak to me.

The blogosphere was really vivid and alive in 2002 and it brought a certain excitement that the old news could not possibly bring. It was more real, and people’s voices came out and sung.

Self-employed and highly interested in the new world, I could not help but dive in and read read read, many hours a day.

Today my “top 10″ list is not covering topics that are important to me, even though I spend much time looking for fresh new thinking. Then, my “top 10″ was heavily weighted towards the state of the world. Sully, USS Clueless, a fiery political Lileks, a less knee-jerk LGF, Eject Eject Eject. I would happily eat up long essays that brought me the world in new ways I hadn’t considered it before. Sometimes they were wrong but they were always smartly so.

For me it was Schaivo that turned the tide foul. My previously favorite thinkers found it the Most Important Thing In The World. I found it to be nonsense. I realize it’s only opinion and that if I thought it was Important the bloggers voices would still seem essential. The commenters still felt it was essential. But something was lost.

Today the top 10 is more like: Boing Boing (web/tech/culture oddity), A List Of Things Thrown Five Minutes Ago (pop culture), Kausfiles, Gizmowatch, Insty, Michael Totten. Mostly not state-of-the-world, most of the politics is interesting non-partisan analysis, more about fun.

]]> By: ashok http://www.buzzmachine.com/2006/04/16/managing-expectations/#comment-39195 ashok Mon, 17 Apr 2006 03:54:21 +0000 http://www.buzzmachine.com/?p=1386#comment-39195 Re: warblogging. Warbloggers had to have a <i>a hostility to the Culture War and other artifacts of the professionalized left-right split of the 1990s.</i> I get the feeling something is not feasible with that. To what degree do the culture wars define nearly everything we are as Americans? Re: warblogging. Warbloggers had to have a a hostility to the Culture War and other artifacts of the professionalized left-right split of the 1990s.

I get the feeling something is not feasible with that. To what degree do the culture wars define nearly everything we are as Americans?

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