Second blog post assignment: analyze another blog. In other words, blog about a blog. This one will be interesting.
I took a shot at treehugger.com, and I was decently impressed.
According to the site's history page, TreeHugger was acquired by Discovery Communications so that it could expand its audience past the hardcore environmentalists toward the people who are mildly interested in sustainable living.
Apparently, that was a smart move. I don't consider myself a tree hugger, but I would read this blog again.
Perhaps the most attractive feature is that it has made some sense out of the 30 posts that appear on the site each day. A visitor to TreeHugger can choose between topics such as culture and celebrity, business and politics, or fashion and beauty--meaning that I can navigate directly to a post about how eating vegetables can empirically make a person more attractive.
This seems a fullproof way for the blog site to keep hold of its visitors. Once I read that article about vegetables and beauty, I admit I was a little more open to checking out the post that ranted about Obama's lack of environmental attention in a sneak peak of his State of the Union address.
Each of the blog posts are submitted by different people and from a wide variety of places. On the site's homepage, just today's posts included places such as New York, Istanbul, Paris and Berlin. As a consumer, the idea that this site is an aggregation of many voices and perspectives gives me a sense of security in what I read. I feel like I am not going to get lost in a maze of senseless Sierra Club propoganda, even if that is what a few of the posts contain.
TreeHugger also offers a variety of ways to get involved. It has a seemingly infinite number of links, to forums, games, recycle centers, job posts, and even a calculator to see how much waste and money you will save according to its "climate culture calculator." The site goes from one of simple media consumption--passive media-to-reader--to a more complex and, in many ways, rewarding interaction. The audience is challenged to take what it reads and decide for itself how to react.
That might be why TreeHugger has achieved "Top 20 blog" status. It is a blog focused on social change as a means to a respectable end. In the midst of so much blogging noise, I wouldn't be suprised if many readers say that they see this site as a reprieve. Unlike other blogs, it is not a running commentary based on one or few perspectives. It is informational, simple to navigate and addresses some area of interest for almost anyone who stumbles on the site.
Tomorrow, I'll probably be back to see what the site has to say about the beauty benefits of soy.
Hey Ana - fantastic analysis! It's interesting looking at different blogs and seeing how they address and interact with their audience, so it's great that you commented on how enjoyable it was to interact with this site.
ReplyDeleteYou express yourself so well through your words, offering an intelligent commentary while also revealing a bit about yourself. I definitely enjoyed reading your blog - great job!
Kaely
This was a strong analysis, but it felt a little too formal at times. I caught glimpses of your personality throughout, but I would have liked to see more. Your tone was clear and direct though, which I appreciate. Overall, I enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteExcellent post. I do think a bit more personality could show through, and you should consider whether or not your identity would help add context to your words.
ReplyDeleteGroup blogging is but one of the fascinating possibilities when one considers how the newer platforms open new doors of communication.
Another is the ability to tag posts (and responses) so that they can be sorted, searched and organized. I think we'll talk about this in class today (time permitting).