From the TCMS Media Center

I’ve had a couple of concerns with blog postings.  First, I simply can’t understand why someone would publish very personal thoughts and feelings on the Internet.  As someone who uses a social networking site to keep in contact with family and friends, I am at times shocked by the content of the blog posts. (Go ahead — call me a prude.  I just think some things should be private.)  However, I must realign my thinking on blogs after reading through some of the ones on our suggested reading list.  I was impressed by several and enjoyed reading the thoughts of others on issues that I deal with in my professional life.  (The Ripe Environment, Why I Don’t Assign Homwork, and Patrick’s Update) In normal circumstances I would never have the opportunity to chat face to face with these people.  So, I am going on record to say that I have now changed my official position on blogging: Blogging can be used for communicating thoughts beyond the personal realm — Blogging can be for the greater good.

A second concern I have in regards to blogging is the stream of consciousness style of writing that seems to lead to heated, premature posts.  Though now I can see that I need to reclassify my thoughts on that also.   Could the blog post entitled Teaching Brevity  have been any more valuable in challenging my thoughts on this issue? 

Freedom to comment on blogs does contribute to the meaning.  The nuances one person reads in a blog may be overlooked by a different reader.  Comments (and subscribing to the feeds) can assist other readers in obtaining a fuller scope of the subject being discussed.

There is a blogging literacy in that you must be able to control the stream of consciousness thought process in such a way that you (the blogger) can  communicate your ideas  in a way that others can and want to contribute to your posts which increases the meaning-making of the blogs.