Of course, no one expects blogs to be "fair and balanced." Though research on this is still scant, I suspect that many people who turn to blogs for their news like the frankly unobjective style of information they find there. But it does raise a serious question: For the millions of Americans who regularly go to blogs for political news, what picture of reality are they getting?..
But a campaign is an unusual moment when virtually all news organizations and news blogs are focused on the same set of topics. In more routine times, such as last week's mishmash of news about Harriet Miers, Iraq's vote on its constitution, Hurricane Wilma's gathering force, and the arrest and booking of Sen. Tom DeLay, it's likely that people who turn to blogs -- unless they make the effort to diversify their sources -- will come away with a fragmented picture.
And that's the final similarity between blogs and the MSM: No matter which you use, it's best to read more than one.
Well, as they say in the young teen world, Duh. Many, many blogs are quoted by me and most other bloggers I know (of course the right-wing blogosphere tends to be far more stratified, yada yada yada), as well as sources as diverse as the London Times, Der Spiegel (OK, I doubt I quoted them specifically...yet), China Daily, the Financial Times, MSNBC/Washington Post/Newsweek, KCNA, the Bush press gaggles, the Financial Markets Center, Tricycle, Accesstoinsight.org, and a host of other places. This is an eclectic blog, opinionated, to be sure, but heck, this blog sure doesn't have the historical baggage that the Oregonian's been reported to have.
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