Connecting Information-Can this be any easier?

Chapter four discusses the importance of hyperlinks, which is an important topic in online media.

In my opinion, the most important role of hyperlinks is for citation purposes. Hyperlinks make citations easier and are far more accessible than footnotes. The chapter also discusses the importance of a clean interface. I think that hyperlinks also help in this regard. With hyperlinks, you have less to look at. While they catch your eye, they do not distract your thoughts. And if the information, or report, that the site drew their information from is of interest, or more information is desired, an original source is just a click away. 

 

More interesting to me is the information in chapter seven. Chapter seven discusses blogs and their impact. I found the section on blogging versus journalism to be particularly interesting. 

After the situation with Edward Snowden and Wikileaks last spring, the question of whether bloggers should receive the same rights under the first amendment that journalists receive became a hot topic in Washington. South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham famously got in trouble for gaffing that bloggers should not receive first amendment rights. He meant that they should not receive the same rights as journalists, but the mistake shows the fine line that the issue presents. 

Many journalists feel that they are above bloggers, that they are more professional than bloggers because they are more often paid for their work. Blogging is an open forum, so anyone can do it.

One of my biggest questions is whether a differentiation can be made between more professional bloggers and less professional bloggers. If so, perhaps we can create forums that “professional” bloggers can go to and be protected. As it stands, however, I cannot blame people for saying that bloggers do not deserve journalists rights because I do not expect them as a blogger myself. 

DQs: Should bloggers receive the same first amendment protection as journalists?

Can we create a differentiation to help protect the more professional bloggers? 

Are Bloggers Journalists?-Syracuse University

Bloggers as Journalists-Forbes 

NY Times Debate on Bloggers as Journalists