Tribune Article Blasts Snarky and Destructive Blogs

Posted on December 30, 2005

An article by Kathleen Parker in the Chicago Tribune and other Tribune newspapers tells readers to avoid snarky and destructive blogs. The article compliments some bloggers but says "most babble, buzz and blurt like caffeinated adolescents." Parker's article also discusses blogs that focus on taking pleasure from others' misfortunes.

Schadenfreude -- pleasure in others' misfortunes -- has become the new barbarity on an island called Blog. When someone trips, whether Dan Rather or Eason Jordan or Judith Miller, bloggers are the bloodthirsty masses slavering for a public flogging. Incivility is their weapon and humanity their victim.

I mean no disrespect to the many brilliant people out there -- professors, lawyers, doctors, philosophers, scientists and other journalists who also happen to blog. Again, they know who they are. But we should beware and resist the rest of the ego-gratifying rabble who contribute only snark, sass and destruction.

We can't silence them, but for civilization's sake -- and the integrity of information by which we all live or die -- we can and should ignore them.

Parker's article seems to be referring to attack blogs or troll blogs. She did not single out any individual blogs. Maybe the reason there seem to be more of these kinds of blogs lately is because some bloggers are becoming more desperate to be heard as the blogosphere gets more crowded. We have said before that "snarky and humorous blogs are different and can find an audience but only if they are well-written." We also said that blogs that are always negative will eventually be ignored -- we hope this is true.



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