Mark Finkelstein Gives Lecture

Mark Finkelstein, a contributing editor at NewsBusters and producer of rightANGLE TV, came to my independent media class on Tuesday, March 17. One thing he mentioned struck me as interesting. He said that on the Internet anyone can be discovered.

I know that this is possible. One just has to look at the following Glenn Greenwald's blog has and the popularity of the Drudge Report. But I view their success as the exceptions, not the norm. Most blogs have few, if any followers. So how does one go from unknown to "discovered?"

I'm sure producing good content plays a role in getting discovered. People won't waste their time reading content that is either poorly written or researched. The content cannot only be well reported, but something that is appealing to people. Most blogs are about the daily lives of the writer. Unless the life of the blogger is unusual, the blog will not appeal to the public.

I think the blogger must be passionate about what he or she is writing about. If the blogger is not interested in what he or she is writing about, why will others find it interesting? Simple. They won't. Often it is the passion of the writer that get his or her readers passionate about the topic.

Lastly, I think the blogger must be patient. Success never comes quickly; it takes years of work. If the blogger is passionate about what he or she is doing, this won't be an issue. A passionate blogger will not see what he or she is doing as work, but rather as a fun hobby. For those bloggers who see what they do as another job, they will probably stop blogging before they get a following. Yet for those who stick it out, they can develop a fan base.

I think it's pretty cool that someone could have fans and not even know it. Who doesn't want to have fans? Everyone wants to be admired or seen as important by someone else. The Internet makes that easier. Ah...the beauty of the Internet.