Blogs And Magazines - Friends Or Foes?

By Steve Rubel
Expert Author
Article Date: 2005-02-04

Folio has a piece on the potential threats/opportunities in blogs for the magazine industry. Jedi Master Rex is quoted.

A clip from "Beware the Blog":

"Magazines might be better served looking for ways to capitalize on the readership being sent by blogs to mag sites, or simply engage in the conversation. "Blogs are about linking," says Hammock. "If you get hung up with the notion of linking away from your site-even linking to competing magazine websites-then chances are you'll not make much of an impact."

"No magazine publisher wants to get laughed at, and they seriously run that risk when they start blogs," says Sicha. "Readers still value what the magazines bring, but magazines just can't hear their audiences from behind their insane production schedules, big staffs, and fancy reception desks."

Hammock agrees: "If magazines wade into blogging thinking it's just like magazines or a Web site, they'll discover how unfun life can be in Blogistan.""

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About the Author:
Steve Rubel is a PR strategist with nearly 16 years of public relations, marketing, journalism and communications experience. He currently serves as a Senior Vice President with Edelman, the largest independent global PR firm.

He authors the Micro Persuasion weblog, which tracks how blogs and participatory journalism are changing the public relations practice.

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