Just How Many Chinese Bloggers Are There?
Like many others, I read this brief article on CNN.com entitled, "China bloggers surpass 30 million." The articles says there's about 34 million blog sites, but the more important number is the number of actual bloggers — more than 17 million according to the article. That's a few folks, but not all that many if you consider that more than 105 million persons in China have access to the web — but it's a lot of people for all those censors to worry about (and the number's expected to more than double by 2010).
In this morning's USAToday, there's a good article about the growth of libel suits against bloggers. in the side bar on the left-hand side, "The Bloggiing Boom," are numbers provided by Technorati, the blog search and directory service. Technorati says there are some 53 million blogs, 12% of them in Chinese. This would mean that here are only 6.4 million Chinese language bloggers.
There are likely differences in counting, and the Chinese government surely doesn't include Taiwanese bloggers. But that's still a big difference, with the CNN number about three times as large as the Technorati figure. No matter, there are lots of Chinese bloggers and their number will grow dramatically over time. Maybe even to the extend that it becomes the predominant language of the blogosphere.
Consumer Reports Introduces Safety Blog
While browsing Consumerist the other day for updates on the Krempasky vs. Popken debate, I noticed that one of the posts reported that Consumer Reports has introduced a Consumer Safety Blog. I'm a big fan of consumer advocacy and think it's a great idea. However, I can't say I'm taken with the site right away.
The blog has some obvious design problems. The features on it look pretty solid, but this screenshot depicts several details which make this blog unappealing to me.
1. Posts: I can't see the title of more than one post. While the headline "Cocaine Energy Drink" does grab my attention, I'm not seeing anything else, including the one that's on dorm safety (which is actually titled "Ed Comeau: Firefighter" as though it were paying tribute to Mr. Comeau), the one about Playskool's product recall and the one on bike safety. These headlines immediately would give readers more of an idea about what the blog is about than just the one on the Cocaine Energy Drink. Continue reading “Consumer Reports Introduces Safety Blog” »
An Interview with the Blogger In Chief at the National Association of Manufacturers
It is just sort of a fact that very few trade associations blog. One of the few that does is the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), whose blog is called shopfloor.org.
Not only does NAM blog, it does so very effectively. What makes shopfloor.org work is that it is written by real live human beings who have opinions. Sure, some people aren't going to agree with NAM's point of view. But regardless of your politics you have to respect NAM's willingness to participate in the conversation online. What they are doing is extradinary for a DC-based trade association.
Following is a Q&A with Pat Cleary, the Blogger in Chief at shopfloor.org. Listen to what he says – Pat is a true innovator whether he'll admit it or not.
(1) When did NAM start blogging?
November of 2004.
(2) Where did the idea to launch the blog come from?
I had always wanted to do one. Was the head of Public Affairs when we started it, went to Gov. Engler and he said “go.” It’s important to note that he didn’t say “What’s a blog?” He’s very tech savvy, gave us the green light, for which we are eternally grateful. Most assns are stuck at that step, awaiting a green light from the boss. Continue reading “An Interview with the Blogger In Chief at the National Association of Manufacturers” »