Okay, I’ve been thinking about this. Lovink notes that The Financial Times pronounced the death of the blog back in 2006 (37). Granted, that may have been a bit premature, but you know how the media is – it loves a grand pronouncement! But Lovink’s clear-eyed look at what he terms the “nihilist impulse” in blogging suggests that if these discrete, like-minded communities that collectively comprise the blogosphere remain isolated in their echo chambers, then blogging might certainly lose its appeal and potential. Lovink states, “If the blog scene disintegrates, so too might blogs as technical platforms” (38).

Media constantly evolve, but I’d like to see blogs stick around because I actually do think they have potential and value for seriously scholarly work, but only if we start to think more about that work as process and practice rather than product. (And, BTW, you were right earlier when you said I was being provocative about that). I think blogs are currently under-theorized and that’s the key.

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