SolveYourProblem eLearning Series:
Free Bloggers Guide
20 Pages

Blogs and Associated Responsibilities

It is unrealistic to expect every weblogger to present an even-handed picture of the world. It is also unrealistic to expect them to be forthcoming about their sources, biases, and behavior. Any weblogger who expects to be accorded the privileges and protections of a professional journalist will need to have associated responsibilities. It is an individual's professionalism and meticulous observance of recognized ethical standards that determines his or her status in the eyes of society and the law.

Following standards should always be kept in mind:

• Only fact that is believed to be true should be published

• When you reference, link to the sources if material exists online

• If any incorrect information is published, correct it publicly

• Each entry should be written in a way that could not be changed. Only additions should be made possible, but no rewriting or deletion

• All interest conflict should be disclosed

• Always note questionable and biased sources

Weblogging gives you freedom of expression. At the same time, it has associated responsibilities. It is an individual's professionalism and meticulous observance to recognize these standards.

Though Weblogs started out as merely logs of interesting Web sites, they have evolved into an exchange of communication and information. Professionals, today, are channeling the impulse in such a way that it can actually make some small specific difference in the world.

Professional bloggers are acutely aware of the potential for abuse that their system inherits. They have realized that rights have associated responsibilities; in the end it is an individual's professionalism and meticulous observance of recognized ethical standards that determines status in the eyes of society and the law.

It is considered that the value of blogging for charity offers a more personal connection for donors. Few bloggers have even initiated the practice by adding a donation button to the blog, where people may probably contribute a buck or two. An example of such site is blogathon.org. The list of charities is just as diverse as the bloggers themselves, from the National Film Preservation Foundation to Heifer International, which donates farm animals to hunger-stricken regions. More than a dozen bloggers are backing cancer support group Gilda’s Club and several participants have already raised $6,000 toward a new ambulance for Magen David Adom, the Israeli equivalent of the American Red Cross. Another example is Darwinmag.com, which recently had an article on how the Royal Dutch/Shell Group of Companies' Weblog of "open discussion" provided an example to "companies that want to take their customers seriously as world citizens and not just as potential revenue sources." The article points to The Shell Report, whose tagline is "protecting the environment and managing resources."

Weblog provide many advantages to its readers. It can provide additional information to what corporate media can provide - it can expose the fallacy of an argument or perhaps reveal an inaccurate detail.

Weblogs have been all the rage in online media, but 2003 will be the real breakout year for blogs, as more journalists use them, and more celebrities use them. The weblog network's potential influence is one of the main reasons that mainstream news organizations have begun investigating the phenomenon. Mass media seeks, above all, to gain a wide audience. Advertising revenues, the lifeblood of any professional publication or broadcast, depend on the size of that publication's audience. Content, from a business standpoint, is also a concern. Weblogs fits in all these requirements.

There is every indication that weblogs will gain even greater influence as their numbers grow and awareness of the form becomes more widespread. Someday, news organizations may be willing to point to weblogs or weblog entries as serious sources, but only if weblogs have, as a whole, demonstrated integrity in their information gathering and dissemination, and consistency in their online conduct.

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