Grassroots journalism via blogging has not had its uptake in the
U.K. like it has here in the U.S. The U.K.-based Dot Journalism
authored an article comparing the adoption rate in the two countries. It provided a few interesting answers to the possible reason why. Among them:
"The popularity and awareness of blogging in the US can partly
be explained by cultural differences. The American tradition of talk
radio encourages people to speak their mind, and blogs give an ideal
platform for people who want to rant."
The article quotes Big Blog Company's Jackie Danicki regarding the U.S.-uptake:
"You'd be hard-pressed to find an American
journalist who isn't reading blogs on a regular basis, regardless of
whether or not they keep one."
Based on the research that Big Blog Company has
done, doesn't this tell us yet again that PR agency practitioners need
to be telling their clients to take the phenomenon more seriously? The
gatekeepers are reading blogs and looking to them as sources.