My latest find...and a look at the future of blogging

Yes...I still use Bloglines (although when I forget to check it for a few days, the number of unread entries can be daunting). But I've recently come across another useful blog/news aggregator: findory.

I haven't spent enough time using it to see how well it 'customizes' itself to my tastes...but it should be interesting to monitor its progression. Kinda-sorta reminds me of the MSNBC newsbot - although the MSNBC service only lists 5 stories in its "Personalized" section.

And now for something completely different...I found this article on Wired (via Findory):

After years of juggling a full-time job and a high-profile blog, Jason Kottke is calling it quits.

Quits for the job, that is.

From now on, the New York web designer will no longer be commuting five days a week to his day job at a Manhattan financial services firm. Instead, he'll be devoting himself full time to building out his blog, kottke.org, a scattered collection of writings and photos on topics ranging from web design to the politics of Girl Scout cookie sales.

Now there's a man with confidence in his blogging. I'm embarrassed to say I've never visited his site (I swear I'm heading there right after I finish this post...). Interestingly, Jason has forsaken advertising and plans to survive solely on reader contributions. He also accepts that he'll likely be making far less money as a blogger than as a web designer...but considering the fact that he no longer needs to commute, can choose where to live based on price rather than access to work, and will be engaged in a true labor of love, that doesn't seem like such a rough trade off. It'll be interesting to see how much this sort of phenomenon starts to take off. Full-time "free lance" bloggers (or even hard-core part-timers) could be the vanguard of a new media revolution. If enough skilled bloggers take this path, Yahoo and MSN continue to support RSS feeds on their customizable "home" pages, and sites like Findory, Bloglines, etc. continue to grow in popularity, at what point do people begin to turn first to bloggers as a source of news and commentary?

Consider the case of Stephen Vincent and his blog/book In the Red Zone. Steve just picked up and went to Iraq. He didn't work for a major news agency, he didn't embed himself with the military, and he really isn't beholden to anyone but himself. The stories and perspectives he presents are far different than anything coming from the mainstream media (MSM) on either side of the aisle. He is neither a U.S. military cheerleader nor an Al-Jazeera inspired conspiracy theorist. He is a perfect example of new media. Consider also the increasing number of military blogs - often written straight from the front lines. All of these new sources of information and insight promise to deliver stories from an angle the big boys of the media can't match - and will do so far more quickly as well. When your editors are your viewers and the story evolves after its posting, the process of delivering a story changes dramatically.

Now don't get me wrong...there will always be a place for MSM sources...but they will have to evolve to survive - and adapt many of the tools of the blogger. Take a look at articles published on Slate for an example of what I'm talking about - numerous embedded links, and easy access to comments. Better example? CNet, which now allows trackbacks to its articles. Maybe Jason Kottke seems like the exception now...but I have the feeling, ten or twenty years from now, the folks getting the funny look will be those suggesting a magazine requiring a large staff and tied to its own reporting pool for its stories.

Wired also offers this story elaborating on the woes of print media as the revolution advances.

Oh yeah...and for those of you wondering what the small hyperlinks at the bottom of my posts are...those are Technorati Tags. Click here to check 'em out.

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