Blogging gains in popularity across the Internet

Friday, July 15, 2005

Call it what you want: a Web log, blog or online journal, but their popularity is spreading.

Blogs are easy-to-use Web sites where registered users can post their thoughts and interact with people, most of the time for free, via the Internet. Most blogs can be produced in less than three steps; however, users can design them any way they want.

Kevin Krim, manager of LiveJournal.com, said LiveJournal is one of the oldest blogging services and began as a student project at the University of Washington in Seattle.

Brad Fitzpatrick started the site in 1999 because he wanted something to update his own online Web sites, where his family and friends could keep track of him while he was at school, Krim said. It turned into a major project with many features and soon his friends began using it.

Thus, the site was born. Today, LiveJournal.com is approaching 8 million registered members, half of whom have been active within the last month.

Jeremy Jurgens, 21, of Bowling Green has had an online journal at Blurty.com for a couple of months.

I started blogging not too long ago, Jurgens said. I used to be fairly active with message boards, but it was my girlfriend who talked me into starting my own journal.

Jurgens said he mostly writes about things hes done recently with friends.

I write in it a lot so that my friends and family know whats going on in my life, Jurgens said. I also like to vent about various subjects, or talk about random things, such as something funny I saw on TV.

LiveJournal.com user Amanda Ortega of Bowling Green began her journal in March 2004 and said her blogs range from current events in the news to current events in her life.

Sometimes I blog when I am outraged, other times when I am in a goofy mood, just basically whatever is on my mind, Ortega said. I enjoy sharing silly stories other people would appreciate.

However, theres more to online journals than sitting at the computer and writing. With many different sites on the Internet, choosing the right one for a user can be difficult. A few popular sites include Xanga, LiveJournal, Blogspot and Myspace. Some of these sites allow users to publish text, photos and music, and most let the blogger design their journal to fit their personal style with colors and fonts.

Krim said LiveJournal stresses designing the site to fit the individuals personality.

Basically, we are continuously responding to what the people want. In fact, that is the most requested feature, Krim said. Every month we add a few more styles and encourage the user to make their site totally unique.

The design aspect means a lot to Ortega, as well.

Some journals are pretty much impossible to read because of the colors and pictures, Ortega said. I think I created something that fits my personality pretty well.

Along with the freedom of being able to publish whatever information the blogger wants, comes responsibility.

Krim urges users to exercise the same common sense judgment they use in real life.

Be cautious of who you interact with and wary of giving out personal information, Krim said.

Most sites are set up so that users can communicate through the journal, so if a person is not comfortable giving out personal information, such as their e-mail address, street address or phone number, they dont have to.

Jurgens said when it comes to mentioning friends and family members in journals, most bloggers should use a policy of asking the person first.

If I write about someone, I only use their first name, and its not like Im giving out their address, Social Security number, birthday, etc. … also, there are millions of people with the same name, Jurgens said. None of my friends or family have ever complained.

Western Kentucky University student Thomas DeSena, a Xanga.com blogger, agrees.

I think nowadays, people are so desensitized to the Internet that they dont even care if their name is used, DeSena said.

If bloggers use proper precautions, having an online journal can be a very rewarding experience, Krim said.

At LiveJournal, we encourage people to create connections with people by revealing interests on their user profile, Krim said.

Mike Comer of Bowling Green has a journal at Xanga.com. Comer said he likes that members of a site can search and read his journal based on interests.

I love to meet new people and dont mind at all that strangers may be reading my journal, Comer said.

DeSena agrees.

You pretty much go into making a blog site with the expectation that strangers can and will read it, DeSena said. I just hope that if they do, they find it entertaining and maybe it brightens their day.

Additional features on many sites include a friends page, where users can add other users as friends; communities, which are special accounts that allow all its members to contribute to one journal, or the choice to make your journal friends only, where only users you select as friends can view your entries.

Users also have the option to make entries private, friends only, or public.

At LiveJournal, 70 percent of entries are public entries, Krim said, while 25 percent are friends only and 5 percent are completely private.

David Anderson, attorney with English, Lucas, Priest and Owsley, said businesses dealing with any employment issues involving online journals could face difficult situations because of Freedom of Speech and First Amendment rights.

We havent had to deal with any aspects, positive or negative, of online journals yet, but it could happen in the future, Anderson said. Users should be aware that whatever they write is public domain, and that anyone can have access to it at anytime.

Jurgens said even though he mentions his job and his boss in some of his journal entries, hes not worried about the ramifications of his boss finding it.

If my boss found my journal, I think he might be upset, but he is professional enough that he wouldnt let it affect anything, he said.

Ortega said work matters should stay at work.

What goes on behind closed doors doesnt need to be said over the Internet, he said.

Trevor Marsh, president of Greenwood High Student Technology Leadership Program and a mentor for i-Safe, speaks with teenagers about Internet safety and urges bloggers to keep personal information in their journals to a minimum.

I dont think people realize that anyone can find you, simply by having your zip code and last name, Marsh said.

Krim said he encourages members to behave as they would in the off-line world.

Tell the truth about your age, make sure your parents are aware of what you are doing and use a lot of caution, he advises.

Marsh agrees.

Parents should definitely monitor what information is being put out over the Internet if their child has a journal, Marsh said. We need to educate everyone about online safety issues, ranging from how to behave in chat rooms to what information should be shared on online journals.

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