Why Blogs Have Become Popular
Over the last two decades, new technological advancements have changed how people communicate. The World Wide Web, for instance, provides various platforms for people to exchange ideas and work with others online. One of the most common platforms used is blogs. These web pages serve as a publicly accessible personal journal of an individual, corporation, or business. The popularity of blogs is rising with the vast growth of the internet. Through these platforms, people have the chance to write and share their content. In addition, blogs facilitate communication and collaboration with other people worldwide. The readers also have the freedom to share their opinions on different topics in discussion instantly. The popularity of most blogs in the 21st century is based on numerous reasons.
First, blogs are great tools for networking and exposure. Most bloggers use their platforms to increase their prospects for networking with other peers. Blogs help people establish their subject matter authority and widen their audience over the internet. Through these platforms, people have an opportunity to promote their skills and services to a broader reach, which could result in better business or employment prospects. Blogs also help the readers connect with other people with similar interests. The readers are also exposed to different thoughts and opinions of people within this online community, an encounter that could shape their way of thinking. The diversity of the readers also creates exposure to people’s interests based on different social identifiers.
Blogs’ popularity can also be linked to the platform’s ability to keep its audience entertained. Entertainment is an essential part of every individual’s life. Therefore, people constantly search for ways to take a break from their daily schedules and relieve stress while keeping themselves entertained. With the massive internet use, blogs offer people the distraction they need in an entertaining way (Francis, 2019). Some people create blog posts not only to share information but also to entertain their audience. These weblogs often involve sports, travel, comedy and humor, celebrity entertainment, and arts. Such media outlets gain popularity based on their entertaining features.
Human beings are constantly seeking to expand their comprehension and expertise. Therefore, they turn to online platforms to satisfy this need. Some blogs have an educational focus, which offers their readers information based on expertise on a specific topic. In addition, professional journalists publish reports like research articles summarizing the findings on affording rent in the U.S., which are relevant to educating readers (Scrutner & Bond, 2022). Health practitioners may create blogs to educate people on specific health conditions. In addition, people in other fields of expertise, such as entrepreneurs, share their experiences, thus educating readers on handling various situations. Such information is often structured simply, unlike the complex research studies reports, thus making it easy for people to gain more knowledge.
Blogs also act as an excellent platform to keep up with current affairs. For instance, during the coronavirus pandemic, people turned to online platforms like blog posts to learn more about the crisis’s current situation. Media outlet platforms shared and still share their knowledge on the matter while providing more insight into the World Health Organization’s progress in dealing with the global catastrophe (Vlachou, 2022). Similarly, political-based blogs often publish articles on political events and the world’s current affairs. Most people within the online community find such blogs to be a better source of political information since the bloggers share honest information and opinions, unlike traditional media outlets, which might share biased reports. In contrast to professional journalists, bloggers are not afraid of criticizing events or any political figures upon making a mistake. Therefore, their platforms have gained popularity as they keep people updated with authentic and unbiased information.
Role of Blogs in Policy Analysis
Policy analysis is essential to determine guidelines that might achieve their intended goals. According to Weimer and Vining (2017), policy analysis is a method used in public administration to allow government employees, activists, and other individuals to review and assess the possibilities of carrying out the law’s objectives. This procedure is also relevant in managing substantial enterprises using intricate policies and can be classified into an analytical, descriptive, or prescriptive aspects. While blogging has gained popularity over the years, it plays a massive role in policy analysis.
As one of the most common media outlets, blogging platforms significantly shape various political processes through bottom-up policy agenda-setting, for instance, blog posts might introduce a specific discussion to the public, thus influencing their demands on certain policy adjustments. These internet-based platforms also contribute to various opinion polls collecting information like the individuals’ satisfaction with various local and international guidelines. Since people are also free to share their thoughts and opinions about certain political aspects, blogs help to create a better understanding. Consequently, these actions and resulting public opinions from the online communities help to identify and define existing policy concerns and individual’ recommendations. Therefore, with the blogs setting the agenda, they lead other publicists on the aspect of globalization.
Blogging platforms also conduct independent investigations on various political aspects. Unlike traditional media outlets, they have direct contact with a large, active audience, a factor that enables them to carry out research, for instance, through online surveys. Through the platforms, bloggers address the people directly affected by various policies: community members and local decision-makers. According to the Office of the Associate Director for Policy and Strategy (2021), policy analysis requires collecting contextual information like social and cultural perspectives. Through blogging platforms’ independent research, bloggers can help various stakeholders understand peoples’ perspectives on the policies and gather various suggestions on specific political issues. In addition, blogging helps to identify the priorities among people based on their contributions rather than making assumptions. This process helps to determine the viability of various policy options based on actual situations and individual experiences.
Lastly, blogs often act as an extended public sphere that is deliberative and inclusive. Although impacting any policy can be challenging, blog posts contribute to decision-making. The platforms are part of the wide range of communication channels on the internet. Therefore, blogs help bridge the communication gap between local decision-makers and community members. Unlike the other media outlets, the scrutiny nature of blogs helps to understand the honest opinions towards some issues. Through such deliberative and inclusive communication, the actual impact of the existing policies can be analyzed, thus aiding in creating new policy proposals.
How Policy Analysis Role of Bloggers Differ from Think Tanks
The role of bloggers in policy analysis highly differs from the Think tanks. Think tanks often research, analyze, and communicate various social policy developments. Most of these research institutes are often non-governmental organizations that rely on individuals’ donations and government grants. However, some are semi-autonomous agencies within a national government, while others are associated to certain businesses or political parties. They engage in the policy development of public and private-based national and international institutions (Stone & Ladi, 2017). Through their responsibilities, think tanks attempt to integrate policy analysis and policy-making, thus placing them at the nexus of academics, public policy, and politics. In addition to policy analysis, think tanks advance their policy products into the decision-making circle. This surpasses the bloggers’ role of analyzing the policies and suggesting changes.
Think tanks’ styles of policy analysis also differ from those of the bloggers. In contrast to bloggers, their analysis styles are highly academic and follow scholarly rules. In addition, based on the expertise in the field, the policy analysis styles of think tanks are significantly technical. Their work can also be blatantly ideological and advocacy-driven, with wildly divergent standards of quality throughout (Stone & Ladi, 2017). Through this, think tanks establish advisory linkages to various governments, industries, and the general public. Therefore, their role in policy analysis goes beyond cerebral activity, resulting in professional comments or publications. Instead, think tanks’ policy analysis is action-oriented, based on the institution’s policy and rivalry in the marketplace of ideas.
Think tanks’ policy analysis efforts are considered to be long-term based. Therefore, they compete nationally and internationally against the government and other international organizations to shape narratives like climate and other policy initiatives. Unlike bloggers, think tanks work with university professors and other well-known experts on globalization (Stone & Ladi, 2017). Therefore, through frequent communication with these organizations, they play an essential role in how civil society is changing the world. Therefore, these think tanks’ policy analysis modes distinguish them from the bloggers.
References
Francis, A. M. (2019). Blogging in a Study Abroad Class to Promote Active Learning and Student Engagement. Journal of Global Initiatives, 14(1), 76-95. Web.
Office of the Associate Director for Policy and Strategy. (2021). Polaris: Policy Analysis. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Web.
Scrutner, S., & Bond, C. (2022). The hourly income you need to afford rent around the U.S. Huffpost. Web.
Stone, D., & Ladi, S. (2017). Policy analysis and think tanks in comparative perspective. Routledge handbook of comparative policy analysis. Routledge. Web.
Vlachou, M. (2022). WHO Chief Strikes Optimistic Tone On COVID: ‘The End Is In Sight’. Huffpost. Web.
Weimer, D., & Vining, A. (2017). Policy Analysis: Concepts and Practice (6th ed.). Routledge. Web.