Give a monkey a brain, and he’ll swear he is at the center of the universe.
- Fishbone
Here are some background materials you can read before you read my side of the story:
- Rom discusses a short history of media.
- The Jester-in-Exile talks about the differences of mainstream media and blogging.
- Cocoy discusses the disruptive technology of new media.
- Dean Jorge Bocobo (the most cheerful middle-aged man I have ever met in my life) writes a piece about traditional media and blogging.
OK: the unfortunate thing here is that I come from both traditional media and new media. While I do not hold the monopoly of knowledge about this topic… oh well, here goes nothing: I think that any distinction between “mainstream media” and “blogging” that puts one above the other – or more impactful or more insightful than the other – is complete bollocks.
I think that rather than emphasize the differences between traditional media and blogging – or at the very least force them to exist with bloody borders – we should focus on the relationship between them. Whenever I write an opinion or commentary piece in The Marocharim Experiment or Filipino Voices, I rely on traditional media to get my facts straight. That will involve reading a lot of newspapers. To say that I can write commentary without using the coverage of a newspaper (whether in the virtual form or an actual paper) is not only arrogant, but it’s misguided.