Procrastadabbler

A few years ago I read Ben Agger’s books on Fast Capitalism. One of the arguments he makes is that the Internet has brought about the breakdown of the line between the public and the private.  In today’s NYTimes Magazine there is an article that captures that phenomenon. It is a column by Emily Gould called Exposed. She writes of her experience as a personal blogger and then working for Gawker.

As a blogger myself, I can relate to her feelings of why we blog. It is almost a compulsion. When I was younger, I kept a journal. Writing has long been a place where I figure things out. Knowing that someone might read my posting changes things. I’m a bit more careful about what I write, I consider the long term implications more. As Gould writes, there is difference in spewing and honing one’s ideas. There is a place for both, but a blog is not the place for spewing.

I also like Gould’s term, “oversharing.” Letting people know too much.

What I think is occurring is a rethinking of the purpose of a blog. It’s not an online journal, although many have described it as such. A blog is a place to capture ideas, to tag those ideas so they can be categorized, and it allows both the author and any potential readers the ability to step back and see how ideas are developing over time – either by category or whatever.

It takes me back to the idea of the commonplace book.