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Saturday, May 27, 2006
The Rise of the Right Wing Blogs
Tim Montgomerie has written an article for tomorrow's Business newspaper on the rise and influence of the right wing blogs. Click HERE.
{Where is the grassroots Labour campaign to oust Tony Blair and replace him with Gordon Brown?}
If you read the more sane left wing blogs like Harry's Place, you will notice that they spend most of their time fighting the extreme left, so they tend not to concentrate on details like 'Blair or Brown' but on things like why it's not A-Ok to support the assassination of the Prime Minister. They would probably be more effective if the just treated the RESPECT types with the derision they merit and engaged with their actual opponents.
the interweb and blogging in particular are going to increase in influence in the future, but I suspect that the real reason it took off so rapidly in the US (and apparently France) is that the media there are percieved as being more left of centre (US) or pro-government (France).
In the UK our media are more widely varied in their philosophies and the broadcast media are still percieved to be balanced by the general public; yes, even the BBC.
One interesting point was made, though. Tim highlighted the fact that blogging tends towards the negative. While I admit that giving the likes of Cherry, Tony and all the other NuLabour crooks and mountebanks a good kicking can be fun. Perhaps the pyjama mafia should be wary of going down the tabloid path completely and also include positive ideas for discussion.
This interweb thingy is the ideal medium for floating ideas and getting reaction to them from a pretty wide audience (or at least potentially so). Shouldn't the more sane right-wing bloggers make more use of this aspect of the web, complementing the work of the think tanks?
I think bloggers are, our only hope when the world has gone mad, lightweights like Cambell arrogance of the Blairs and Prescotts of this world and Liberal Minggers
Isn't the authoritarian/libertarian argument more a function of this particular government's obsession with control and its disregard for our constitutional history?
Under a more traditional regime, wouldn't we be happily beating each other over the head about state ownership of industry etc?
Can't say I disagree with Tim's analysis.
ReplyDeleteNot sure about the bit at the end of the article - 'But it (blogs)will make the difference in many marginal seats.'
ReplyDelete{Where is the grassroots Labour campaign to oust Tony Blair and replace him with Gordon Brown?}
ReplyDeleteIf you read the more sane left wing blogs like Harry's Place, you will notice that they spend most of their time fighting the extreme left, so they tend not to concentrate on details like 'Blair or Brown' but on things like why it's not A-Ok to support the assassination of the Prime Minister. They would probably be more effective if the just treated the RESPECT types with the derision they merit and engaged with their actual opponents.
Agree with Larry - no substitute for footsoldiers. Tories wouldn't have gained control of boroughs like Hounslow by spending time on the internet.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thisishertfordshire.co.uk/news/roundup/display.var.772347.0.tory_mayors_35year_wait.php
the interweb and blogging in particular are going to increase in influence in the future, but I suspect that the real reason it took off so rapidly in the US (and apparently France) is that the media there are percieved as being more left of centre (US) or pro-government (France).
ReplyDeleteIn the UK our media are more widely varied in their philosophies and the broadcast media are still percieved to be balanced by the general public; yes, even the BBC.
One interesting point was made, though. Tim highlighted the fact that blogging tends towards the negative. While I admit that giving the likes of Cherry, Tony and all the other NuLabour crooks and mountebanks a good kicking can be fun. Perhaps the pyjama mafia should be wary of going down the tabloid path completely and also include positive ideas for discussion.
This interweb thingy is the ideal medium for floating ideas and getting reaction to them from a pretty wide audience (or at least potentially so). Shouldn't the more sane right-wing bloggers make more use of this aspect of the web, complementing the work of the think tanks?
just a thought.
RM
Unity, I said 'more' sane.
ReplyDeleteI think bloggers are, our only hope when the world has gone mad, lightweights like Cambell arrogance of the Blairs and Prescotts of this world and Liberal Minggers
ReplyDeleteUnity,
ReplyDeleteIsn't the authoritarian/libertarian argument more a function of this particular government's obsession with control and its disregard for our constitutional history?
Under a more traditional regime, wouldn't we be happily beating each other over the head about state ownership of industry etc?
RM