12/03/03 - 2:17 PM - EthicalEsq commenting on the research:
The study makes one thing clear: there are both trivial and serious forms of (attempts at) web log usage, and only a tiny portion of web log creators are attempting to engage in "serious" public communication. Most are merely socializing.... Technology doesn't change human nature as much as it heightens it. As the web log becomes a tool in political campaigns, for example, it seems more likely that what is bad about politics will infect weblogging than that weblogging will somehow raise the level of political discourse or behavior.
I do think much of blogging is socializing: "persistent messaging" vs. "instant messaging". Yet socializing shouldn't be depreciated; we are social animals, after all. I think the social uses of blogs can be beneficial, connecting people in new communities. And there's gold to be found in them thar hills: VCs are interested in social networking.
The statement "Technology doesn't change human nature as much as it heightens it" is great, but I'm not sure politics is the best example. Political weblogs have in fact dramatically increased participation in political discourse, as well as political fundraising. (Sorry to bring it back to money again.)