Anatomy Of A Blog Swarm
There was, as typically accompanies these types of dustups, some rude back and forth between author and commenters. But ultimately, writes Perlstein, "Carney was rude and wrong. The barbaric yawpers of the netroots were rude and right."
The whole tiff is but one example of how bloggers are ushering in a "new, more uncomfortable media world," writes Perlstein, "one in which, to judge a piece of writing, we must gauge not the status of the writer, but his or her words themselves, unattached to the author's worldly rank." And that's "all right" with him.
It's also created a world in which traditional media are competing with more than just themselves – bloggers are, increasingly, seen as rivals.
One example of this rivalry can be found in the coverage of the trial of Scooter Libby, where, as Perlstein points out, "some of the distinguished gentlemen and gentleladies of the press have seemed none too pleased that the journalistic pace is being set" by the ever present bloggers at that venue. They're providing real-time transcripts and context "more expert in many cases than the cable news legal commentators."
Of course, the entire mainstream press shouldn't be indicted because one mainstream journalist made an error. And the entire blogosphere shouldn't be lauded because a few bloggers were keen enough to point the error out. The reality is that some bloggers are more reliable than others and the same goes for mainstream journalists. But it seems increasingly clear that, regardless of status, sloppy work is going to be recognized as such.