What makes Austin Bloggers Weird?
**This is a crosspost of an entry over at my group's blog for my citizen journalism class.**
Austin is a big city, and while it may not be one of the larger cities in the U.S., the blogosphere around here is almost ominous.
Robbie Cooper has been blogging at Urban Grounds since 2003, with topics ranging from international news and politics to disc golf and getting hit by a deer while riding his motorcycle in west Austin.
Cooper is a conservative blogger in Austin, and sees himself as one of the few.
"The Austin Blogosphere is unabashedly and inarguably Liberal, and most of the best Austin blogs revolve around state and local politics. Meanwhile positive or substantial blogging on behalf of local and state Republicans is scarce," he said.
One of those major political blogs on the left is the Burnt Orange Report, which has a team of bloggers behind it. The BOR seems to blog exclusively on Texas politics, but receives almost 2,000 hits a day, and has had over 1 million since its inception.
Why has Austin become such a hub for blogs, especially political ones? Cooper believes that it's all about location.
"This was where President Bush started his political life, this is where our Democrats run to Mexico to avoid votes, we’re never more than a stone’s throw away from any major Texas or even national story," Cooper said.
Cooper also believes that because Austin is a wireless city, blogging has become easier and more real-time.
"Everywhere you go in this city is a wireless access point. Live blogging is possible everywhere you look," Cooper said. "Austin bloggers, for the most part, conduct themselves as if they might actually run into each other at the local coffee shop or diner. And that’s probably because there’s a good chance that they will."
One place that Austin Bloggers can vitually "meet" is at AustinBloggers.org, an aggregator of posts by registered Austin bloggers that have to do with the hyperlocal news arena. Different Austin bloggers can read about what other bloggers are saying in their area and link to each other, engage in debate about local events, or even find something to do that night in the city.
Austin bloggers can also meet up at Metroblogging: Austin, which is part of the larger Metroblogging site, which specializes in local blogs where citizens of large cities can meet to get a sense of community.
In addition to Austin's location and wireless capability, Cooper believes that the emergence of Austin as a major blogging locale reflects the mainstream publication the city reads.
"I think that the Austin blogosphere has magnified the inadequacy of our local newspaper, the Austin American Statesman. With the breadth and depth of coverage provided by Austin Blogs, it’s glaring how much the Statesman misses or just plain underreports," he said.
The Austin-American Statesman seems to be responding, however, with the launch of their own blogs as a branch of their online news edition. The Statesman has allowed community voices to be a part of their mainstream publication in an effort to reach out to the blogosphere, and is one of the first mainstream publications to do so. In addition, the blogs are powered by Pluck, an Austin Internet solutions company that specializes in RSS, or "real simple syndication."
Perhaps one of the major forces fueling Austin bloggers is pride for the city itself, reflecting its inherent weirdness.
"The common theme I’ve found in all Austin blogs is an overwhelming sense of pride and love for the city itself," Cooper said.
Austin is a big city, and while it may not be one of the larger cities in the U.S., the blogosphere around here is almost ominous.
Robbie Cooper has been blogging at Urban Grounds since 2003, with topics ranging from international news and politics to disc golf and getting hit by a deer while riding his motorcycle in west Austin.
Cooper is a conservative blogger in Austin, and sees himself as one of the few.
"The Austin Blogosphere is unabashedly and inarguably Liberal, and most of the best Austin blogs revolve around state and local politics. Meanwhile positive or substantial blogging on behalf of local and state Republicans is scarce," he said.
One of those major political blogs on the left is the Burnt Orange Report, which has a team of bloggers behind it. The BOR seems to blog exclusively on Texas politics, but receives almost 2,000 hits a day, and has had over 1 million since its inception.
Why has Austin become such a hub for blogs, especially political ones? Cooper believes that it's all about location.
"This was where President Bush started his political life, this is where our Democrats run to Mexico to avoid votes, we’re never more than a stone’s throw away from any major Texas or even national story," Cooper said.
Cooper also believes that because Austin is a wireless city, blogging has become easier and more real-time.
"Everywhere you go in this city is a wireless access point. Live blogging is possible everywhere you look," Cooper said. "Austin bloggers, for the most part, conduct themselves as if they might actually run into each other at the local coffee shop or diner. And that’s probably because there’s a good chance that they will."
One place that Austin Bloggers can vitually "meet" is at AustinBloggers.org, an aggregator of posts by registered Austin bloggers that have to do with the hyperlocal news arena. Different Austin bloggers can read about what other bloggers are saying in their area and link to each other, engage in debate about local events, or even find something to do that night in the city.
Austin bloggers can also meet up at Metroblogging: Austin, which is part of the larger Metroblogging site, which specializes in local blogs where citizens of large cities can meet to get a sense of community.
In addition to Austin's location and wireless capability, Cooper believes that the emergence of Austin as a major blogging locale reflects the mainstream publication the city reads.
"I think that the Austin blogosphere has magnified the inadequacy of our local newspaper, the Austin American Statesman. With the breadth and depth of coverage provided by Austin Blogs, it’s glaring how much the Statesman misses or just plain underreports," he said.
The Austin-American Statesman seems to be responding, however, with the launch of their own blogs as a branch of their online news edition. The Statesman has allowed community voices to be a part of their mainstream publication in an effort to reach out to the blogosphere, and is one of the first mainstream publications to do so. In addition, the blogs are powered by Pluck, an Austin Internet solutions company that specializes in RSS, or "real simple syndication."
Perhaps one of the major forces fueling Austin bloggers is pride for the city itself, reflecting its inherent weirdness.
"The common theme I’ve found in all Austin blogs is an overwhelming sense of pride and love for the city itself," Cooper said.
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