The Types of Blogs

The progress and widespread use of blogs has meant that defining the types of blog is an important step towards understanding the whole conceptualization of blogging as well as the direction blogging is heading towards in the near future.

According to Margaret Simons, an author and media analyst, there are nine varying types of blogs with distinct functions and features.

Pamphleteering blogs, named after the mass publication boom following the 17th-century print explosion, are an outlet for individuals or groups to respond to facts published in the mainstream media to 'argue a case or push a cause' (Simons 2008).

Meanwhile, advocacy blogs are run by established advocacy groups or commercial organizations whose main goal is to only discuss about one particular topic (Simons 2008).

A blog which teaches readers a new skill-set is what Simons (2008) terms as Popular Mechanics blogs, named after the retro Popular Mechanics magazine which displayed medley of information and tips on how to do things. In the absence of a better title, I think that the How-To blog is a much more apt classification which is more directly understandable.

Exhibition blogs, on the other hand, are utilized by artists, writers, and creative individuals who use their blogs as outlets to reach a larger audience with their work and art.

Gatewatching blogs, meanwhile, are maintained by experts with a wide array of public knowledge who pay attention and run the rule over the perceived 'gatekeepers' of the traditional media (A Taxonomy of Blogs 2008).

On the other side of the spectrum, the Diary blogs are well, online diaries. Diary blogs are used by individuals to post photos, videos, and information of their daily lives and the latest happenings which are important to them. The audience for these blogs are usually the bloggers' friends and family.

The Digest Blogs predominantly summarize and collect aggregated information on a single topic from the mainstream media or other blogs, but they act more like a mediator to other links regarding the topic.

The Advertisement Blogs are the most business-centric in the blogs family album. The nature of Advertisement Blogs is that companies would pay established bloggers 'undisclosed kickbacks to boost their products as well as establishing their own blogs to do the same' (Simons 2008).

Last but not least, the News Blog is a phenomenon when bloggers are the ones breaking the news and attending press conferences. In Malaysia, News Blogs have yet to really gather pace as bloggers here react to news and not vice versa.


The taxonomy of blogs will continue to evolve into and be replaced by newer models with more features and other goals. Simons (2008) even believes that the word 'blog' will vanish in the next decade or so, replaced by the next big thing on the internet.


References:

A Taxonomy of blogs 2008, radio program, ABC Radio National, 25 September.

Dominick, J 2007, The dynamics of mass communication, McGraw-Hill International, New York.

Simons, M 2008, Towards a taxonomy of blogs, Creative Economics Online, viewed 8 June 2009, http://www.creative.org.au/webboard/results.chtml?filename_num=229836.