Ok, so there’s been a bit of drama over the NY Times piece in the style section about Blogher. I understand the anger about being relegated to the style page simply because we’re women. I get that. What is just really frosting me, is the phrase I keep seeing used as a validation of blogging mothers. The wording differs blog to blog, but the meaning is the same.
Most of us [female bloggers] are actively and agressively courted by corporations and PR firms.
Really? most of us? Am I that much in the minority? I know I’m not an A-list blogger, heck I’m not even on the B-list. I think I’ll join Kathy Griffen on the D-list. But seriously, “most of us“? Don’t know about you, but I surely do not have PR firms filling my inbox. No one is sending me schwag to review.
I know, it’s a little thing. But really, it just heaps doubt and guilt upon us lowly D-listers, or at least it does on me. I get it. I don’t write as much as I should to be a more popular blogger. I don’t participate at blogher.com as much as possible. But I can’t possibly be in the minority here. I’d wager that its more likely the other way around – that there a select group of chosen bloggers who are courted because of their A-list popularity, while the rest of us are ignored.
Let’s face it, success like Dooce is extremely rare. Turning your blog into something you can be paid to do is not easy. Most of us blog because we want to write, to connect somehow. I have a theory that blogging today is like the backyard fence of yesteryear. I can remember my mom talking with our neighbor over the fence. These days, I don’t know much more about my neighbors then their names, if that. But I can tell you all about my favorite blogger, and I know at least a few of my readers personally.
So how about it fellow bloggers? Is there a wider gap than I thought in the BlogHer/female blogging community? Or am I in the pitiful minority, just like high school?
Well, I’m with you. I would’ve thought we’re not the minority. But isn’t that just like the media to take things out of context, count the opinions of a few as that of the masses, and misconstrue the reality. I’m not up there in the ranks either, and that’s fine. I don’t really want to have a gajillion people following me, lurking me, or whatever. I have some bloggy friends and I have fun, so it’s all good IMHO.
Blessings,
Dianne 🙂
I’m with you. I don’t mind being on the D-list or whatever. Less drama down here. But I hate when, in an attempt to prove that we moms who blog matter, the a listers make such wide statements. makes the rest of us, or at least me, wonder what I’m missing. you know?