Blogversations has been getting a lot of attention lately. I agree with Tom Murphy that it is not a good thing. But it is not evil either. In fact, entrants like this into the blogosphere are to be expected as the medium matures.
Look at publishing. Every PR person has secured an editorial placement in a second or third tier publication. PR people do not frame the placement or order reprints of it. Everyone knows that the publication is not viewed as credibly as other industry publications. Some people call them rags.
Most anyone, bloggers in particular, will be wise to this approach. We all spot "advertisement" printed in the footer of advertorials and we can discern between third party content and a straight ad.
Need another example? Take television. There are a few unique, creative and innovative shows in any genre—comedy, drama, even reality—and three times as many also rans. The good go into syndication. The also rans? Not so much.
To recap: We're giving Blogversations more attention than they are due. This medium is growing. People are smart and will always separate good content from bad content.
Agree with you, Kevin, but I think that bloggers are already doing that independently (talking about products, ideas and causes).
What may concern me is that credibility will reduce and this is exactly what blogosphere stands for.
Without credibility, confidence on blogs will drop dramatically.
Best.
Posted by: Octavio Rojas | 08/25/2004 at 05:36 PM