Blog History

Before blogs have become popular, digital communities took many forms, including Usenet, commercial services such as online GEnie, and CompuServe BiX early, mailing lists [2] and BBS (Bulletin Board Systems). In the 1990's, the Internet forum software, such as WebEx, created running conversations with "son". Threads are topical connections between messages on a metaphorical "corkboard." Some have compared the blogs to mass-observation project from the mid-20th century. [Edit]

1983-1990 (Pre-HTTP)

Usenet has been the principal means of series included in the original definition of the World Wide Web. [3] He presented the Moderated Newsgroup which allowed all posting in a newsgroup to be under the control of an individual or a small group. Most of these discussion groups were simply lively discussion forums, however, in 1983-84, only one exception, which bears the name mod.ber, has been created, named and managed by an individual: Brian E. Redman. Regularly, Redman and some people posted summaries of interesting messages and threads taking place elsewhere on the net. With his style of the serial publication of scientific journals, of the presence in the pre-Web HTTP and strong similarity to the town as a blog, which provides links to interesting places and cool on the net chosen by the blogger , mod.ber had many characteristics generally associated with the term "blog". [Edit] [original research?] It stopped functioning after about 8 months. Brad Templeton called rec.humor.funny newsgroup (which he founded), the world's oldest still existing blog [4].

1994-2001

Main Article: Newspaper Online

Brad Fitzpatrick, an early blogger.
Brad Fitzpatrick, an early blogger.

The blog evolved modern-line journal where people would keep a running account of the personal life. Most of these writers themselves known diarists, journalists, or journalers. Some are called "escribitionists. The Open Pages webring included members of the online community newspaper. Justin Hall, who began eleven years of personal blogging in 1994 while a student at Swarthmore College, is generally recognized as one of the first bloggers, [5] as is Jerry Pournelle. [Edit] Another blog was early Wearable Wireless Webcam, shared online Diary of a person's personal life, combining text, video and the live images from a laptop and EyeTap at a peripheral site Web in 1994. This semi-automated blogs with live video with the text, were mentioned as sousveillance, these newspapers were also used as evidence in legal matters.

Other forms of online journals kept there too. A notable example was Thursday programmer John Carmack's widely read newspaper, published by the finger protocol. Some of the first bloggers, as Steve Gibson of sCary's Quakeholio (now Shacknews), and Stephen Heaslip Blue's News (still running since 1995, with online archive from July 1996), has evolved from Quake stage and Carmack. Plan updates. Steve Gibson has been hired full-time by Ritual Entertainment blog on February 8, 1997 [6], possibly making it the first blogger hired.

Websites, including both professional and personal sites homepages has had and continues to have often "What's New" or "news" sections, often on the index page and sorted by date. An example of a current basis "weblog" is the Drudge Report founded by the so-called maverick reporter Matt Drudge, Drudge though apparently dislikes this classification. Another is the Institute for Public Accuracy, which began posting press releases featuring several newspapers attached a paragraph cites several times a week from 1998. An outstanding forerunner of a blog was jokingly that the web site is frequently updated by Usenet legend Kibo.

Early weblogs were simply updated manually components websites. However, the development of tools to facilitate the production and maintenance of web articles posted in reverse chronological order, the publication process has been possible to a much larger, less technical of the population. Ultimately, it led to the particular category of online publication that produces blogs, we recognize today. For example, the use of some sort of browser-based software is now a typical aspect of "blogs". Blogs can be hosted by the blog hosting dedicated, or they may be executed using a blog software maibiganWordPress, Movable Type, Blogger or LiveJournal, or on regular web hosting services.

The term "blog" was coined by Jorn Barger [7] December 17, 1997. The short form, "blog" was coined by Peter Merholz, who broke joked the word blog in the blog, we phrase in the sidebar of his blog Peterme.com in April or May 1999. [8] [9] [10] This has been rapidly adopted as both a noun and verb ( "blog" meaning "to edit his blog or publish in his weblog").

After a slow start, blogging, is rapidly gaining popularity. Blog widespread use during 1999 and subsequent years, to be further popularized by the near-simultaneous arrival of the first hosted blog tools:

* Open Diary launched in October 1998, more quickly to thousands of online newspapers. Open the reader Diary innovated comment, becoming the first community blog where readers can add comments to other writers' blog entries.
* Brad Fitzpatrick, a well-known LiveJournal blogger began in March 1999.
* Andrew Smales Pitas.com established in July 1999 as an alternative easier to maintain a "news page on a Web site, followed by Diaryland in September 1999, focusing more on a personal diary community [11].
* Evan Williams and Meg Hourihan (Pyra Labs), launched in August 1999 blogger.com (bought by Google in February 2003)

Blogging combined the personal web page with tools to make linking to other pages easier - especially permalinks, blogrolls and TrackBacks. This, combined with search engines weblog bloggers to follow the threads that connected to other people with similar interests.

2001-2004

Several blogs widely popular American appeared in 2001: Andrew Sullivan's AndrewSullivan.com, Ron Gunzburger's Politics1.com, Taegan Goddard's Political Wire, Instapundit Glenn Reynolds, Charles Johnson's Little Green balloons, and Jerome Armstrong MyDD - essentially all blogs on politics (two Blogs previous American policies were popular Bob Somerby's Daily Howler launched in 1998 and Mickey Kaus' Kausfiles launched in 1999).

In 2001, blogging was enough of a phenomenon that how textbooks have begun to emerge, focusing on technique. The importance of the community of bloggers (and its relation to society as a whole) has rapidly increased. Established schools of journalism began researching blogs, and noting the differences between journalism and blogs.

Also, in 2002, many blogs focused on comments by US Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott. Senator Lott, at a party honoring U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond, welcomed Senator Thurmond suggesting that the United States would have been better off had Thurmond been elected president. Lott's critics see these comments as tacit approval of racial segregation, a policy advocated by Thurmond in the 1948 presidential campaign. This was supported by documents and interviews recorded unearthed by bloggers. (See Josh Marshall's Talking Points Memo.) Lott Although the comments were made at a public event attended by the media, no major media organizations reported on his controversial comments after the story broke blogs. Blogging helped to create a political crisis that forced Lott to resign as leader of the majority.

The impact of this story gave more credibility to blogs as a means of news dissemination. Although often viewed as partisan gossip, bloggers sometimes lead the way to put key information in the light of the public, with the major media to follow suit. More often, however, news blogs tend to react to documents already published by the mainstream media.

Since 2002, blogs have taken notice and coverage for their role in breaking, shaping, and spinning news stories. The war in Iraq has been taking measured and passionate bloggers views that go beyond the traditional left-right divide of the political spectrum.

Blogging created by politicians and political candidates, to express opinions on the war and other issues, cemented blogs' role as a source of information. (See Howard Dean and Wesley Clark.) Meanwhile, a number Expert growing blogged, which makes blogs a source of in-depth analysis. (See Daniel Drezner and J. Bradford DeLong.)

The second Iraq war was the first "blog war" [edit] in another way: Iraqi bloggers gained wide readership, and the other, Salam Pax, has published a book of his blog. Blogs have also been set up by soldiers serving in the war in Iraq. These "warblogs" [edit] gave readers a new perspective on the realities of war, and often offering views different from those of official information sources.

Blogging has been used to draw attention to obscure information sources. For example, links to other bloggers posted traffic cameras in Madrid as a huge anti-terrorism demonstration filled the streets in the aftermath of the attacks of March 11.

Bloggers began to yield almost-instant commentary on televised events, creating a second meaning of the word "blog": to simultaneously transcribe and editorialize speeches and events shown on television. (For example, "I am the blogging Rice's testimony" means "I am my reactions to the display of Condoleezza Rice, in testimony to my blog as I watch her on television.") Real-time commentary is sometimes referred to as " liveblogging. "

2004-present

In 2004, the role of blogs became increasingly dominant, as political consultants, news services and candidates began using them as tools for outreach and opinion formation. Even politicians not actively campaigning, as the United Kingdom of Labour Member Tom Watson, started this blog links with constituents.

Minnesota Public Radio broadcast a program by Christopher Lydon and Matt Stoller called "The President's blog," which covered the transformation in politics that blogs seem to presage. The Columbia Journalism Review began regular coverage of blogs and blogs. Anthologies of blog pieces reaches print, and blogging personalities have appeared on radio and television. In the summer of 2004, both the United States Democratic and Republican Party conventions accredited bloggers and blogs have become a standard part of the arsenal of advertising. Mainstream television programs, such as Chris Matthews' Hardball, formed their own blogs. Merriam-Webster's Dictionary declared "blog" as the word of the year in 2004 [12].

In 2004, Global Voices Online, a site that aggregates ", curates, and amplifies the global conversation online - shining light on places and people in other media are often unaware" resurfaced, bringing to the light of bloggers worldwide. Today, the site has a relationship with Reuters and is responsible for the failure of many topical issues worldwide.

The blogs were among the driving forces behind the "Rathergate" scandal, namely: (television journalist) Dan Rather presented documents (on the CBS show 60 Minutes), which has accepted conflicting accounts of President Bush's record military service. Bloggers declared forgeries documents to be submitted and the evidence and arguments in support of that view, and CBS apologized for what he said technical reports are inadequate (see Little Green footballs). Many bloggers see this scandal that the advent of blogs' acceptance by the media, both as a source of information and opinion and as a means of political pressure.

Some bloggers have switched to other media. The remainder of bloggers (and others) have appeared on radio and television: Duncan Black (widely known by his nickname, Atrios), Glenn Reynolds (Instapundit), Markos Moulitsas Zúniga (Daily Kos), Alex Steffen ( Worldchanging) and Ana Marie Cox (Wonkette). In counter-point, Hugh Hewitt example of a personality of the mass media, which has moved in the other direction, adding to its reach in the "old media" by being an influential blogger.

Some blogs are an important source of information during the December 2004 tsunami, such as Doctors Without Borders, who used SMS messaging to report from affected areas in Sri Lanka and South India. Similarly, during Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 and the aftermath of a few blogs that were located in New Orleans, whose Interdictor and Gulfsails have managed to retain power and an Internet connection and dissemination of information were not covered by the Main Stream Media.

In the United Kingdom, The Guardian newspaper launched a redesign in September 2005, which included a daily summary of blogs on page 2. Also in June 2006, BBC News has launched a weblog for its writers, as a result of other new companies [13].


In January 2005, Fortune magazine listed eight bloggers that business people "could not ignore": Peter Rojas, Xeni Jardin, Ben Trott, Mena Trott, Jonathan Schwartz, Jason Goldman, Robert Scoble, and Jason Calacanis.

In 2007, Tim O'Reilly's Blogger proposed a code of conduct.