The Intro
There's so much hype and excitement over blogs that it is difficult to comprehend how a phenomenon that seem so simple, can be so well received by the masses. I was stumped... no in fact, I was perplexed! I was thinking to myself, what fun, could people possibly derive from reading blogs, or writing it for that matter... So I thought... and I read... and I thought again... and I read some more, and I finally came up with 2 school of thoughts. One is advocating a simple economic mechanism - the Thory of Demand & Supply, and the other advocates the Theory of Evolution. If you let me indulge, I will share with you what I mean.
It's all about Demand & Supply
I see bloggers like artists. Just like the artist indulging in his/her artwork, bloggers indulge in their stories, experiences, journals... The similarity here is that both do not really expect any returns from doing what they love to do. But if there are any forms of returns, be it appreciation from readers or from art enthusiasts, it will give them the much needed motivation to continue on with their "art". So as long as there are people out there who are reading the blogs(aka demand), there will always be people who will be updating them(aka supply). The more "reads" they see for their blog, the more regular they post updates to keep the readers engaged. And the lesser "reads" they get for their blog, updating will seem... well how shall I put it nicely... Insignificant! I think you get the picture.
Now I go into my second school of thought... and this could interesting...
Evolution Theory
Remember the first few reality shows that hit our tv sets? Candid Camera, America's Funniest Home Videos and yes... even Judge Judy. Those were the pioneers of reality tv. Over time, they evolved to the shows that we have today - Survivor, Amazing Race, Punk'd, Pimp My Ride, Temptation Island, Meet My Folks, Beauty and The Geek, Extreme Makeover, Who Wants to Marry My Dad?(can you believe that show???), etc etc. Somewhere along the way, the fine line was crossed and reality tv became more, and more senseless, in their bid to take it up a notch and maintain viewership.
Similar to reality tv, blogging started out as something simple... People wanted to share information, recipes, remedies, pictures, etc - they created personal websites. Then people wanted to have an avenue for discussion(constructive or otherwise) - forums then blossomed. Now people want to share their experiences, life-stories, journals - this is where blogging comes in. It's all about taking it up another notch. The question is, what comes after blogging? Will it reach a near-senseless state to what we see for reality tv shows or will it become an accepted avenue for mass communication? (There was a debate on a similar topic in the local show "The Arena", but I'll discuss that in another post altogether... I have lots of things to say about that.) Well, I guess we'll just have to wait and see. =)
Conclusion
Some of you may disagree with my thoughts, while there may be some of you who are nodding silently in agreement. Well, that's the beauty of blogging... Everyone's entitled to their own opinions... Well, as long as there is no political or direct insinuations to anyone living or dead (~wink~) . So if you are thinking, which school of thought will I(the author of this blog) choose to go with and why in the world am I blogging, if I paint such a disapproving picture on the whole idea of blogging?
Here's my answer: I choose to walk the evolutionary path because I'm game to try hop on the blogging bandwagon... and I'm definitely curious to find out what could become of blogging... Oh and plus... I have some time to spare. ;)
What can you expect from my blog? Well, I'll try to touch on "hot" and current topics that are on everybody's lips and give my two cents' worth. You can expect me to be blunt and direct but, also logical and sensible nonetheless.
This is my first try at blogging, so here goes nothing...