This is kind of a shout out to all of the bloggers out there because I’d like this to be a topic of discussion for SUWT#9 or 10 (…where ever I can fit it in…). If you have a blog, put in your two sense, link this article or send me an email to let me know that you’ve blogged about it. If you’re not a blogger, comment away and I’ll get those comments in the show.
Are bloggers press? I’ve been thinking about this for some time and really I haven’t come up with an answer. I can only speak for this site, but most of the articles I write here are opinion or editorial about this, that and the other thing. If you’re coming here for facts, then you’re really reading the wrong site. I’m not saying what I do say here is inaccurate, no. What is written here is what I think is right based on my opinion of the facts…with some of those facts mixed in to give context. “Press sites” like Gamespot or 1UP have to be right on their facts when they write about a game. Me? Not so much. I’ll write my opinion on the news of the day. Example…the article I wrote about Raph just today. Gamasutra wrote about the facts of what he said. I took what they said and told you all my opinion based on various things Raph said. Press usually report facts and the news, and that’s it…bloggers don’t necessarily do that every day.
Wanna know my opinion? Heh 
I think blogging is a bit of a square peg that doesn’t really fit in the round hole that is “Press”…at least, not yet. We’re getting there, but I think that industry people have a bit of a hard time figuring what we’re about at this point. We are links to a community of people and we communicate our thoughts and ideas to our audience. Do we report news? Sometimes. Do we bring forward our opinions on that news? Certainly, yes. Are we “Press” for doing so? Ummmmm….
D out.
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September 9th, 2007 at 8:57 pm
Tricky situation bloggers and podcasters are in. Traditional media aka “press” are bound by journalistic integrity and reporting facts in an unbiased manner. Bloggers, on the other hand, are by and large getting on our collective soapboxes and submitting our biased opinions about facts and about the opinions of others doing the same thing. Certainly there have been situations where bloggers gathered information quicker and more useful or valid than the official media did (much to their consternation) but are we to the point yet that we deserve a Press Pass? That also has been done. I suspect it will be awhile yet before Media, Alternative Media, and the consumers of both find a common ground.
September 9th, 2007 at 11:15 pm
No way. I don’t think bloggers are press. Talyn makes a good point with the note that bloggers aren’t held to any kind of journalistic standard the way that traditional media is (whether it actually follows those standards is debatable). The bigger problem, as I see it, is when you call bloggers “press” it gets really hard to differentiate between personal and press blogging. CNN isn’t going to start being a video blog of someone’s cat tomorrow, but you don’t have that guarantee with a blogger. Also, how do you decide which blogs are professional enough to get press perks?
When a blog with good, regular info and journalistic standards doesn’t get an invite or a press pass to an event which a slightly more relaxed, flashy, pop blog does, watch all hell break loose in the blogosphere. Blogs are personal. You have public dialogue on them. It’s easy for a writer to deviate, lose his cool, or even just wander off and stop blogging because it got to be too draining for his life.
Bloggers are too chaotic, too personal, and too transient to really be press. We do what we do for fun, community, and ego. No more, no less.
September 9th, 2007 at 11:21 pm
Excerpted from an old article of mine:
“…Kotaku, Destructoid, and Joystiq — sites which seem to be for-profit and employ multiple people each. …look to me like they’re basically just news sites with a casual tone. They hunt down news just like reporters, perform interviews, write editorials, etc. They just don’t pretend toward that objectivity nonsense. Yes, nonsense; better to just make your biases clear and try to present the opposing side’s case fairly. …
Bloggers represent a source of information that’s further from “business” and closer to “friend” or “word on the street” than media like IGN, Gamespot, or PC Gamer. And gamers are probably more likely to develop a rapport with a blogger, since the writing is more casual and intimate.”
The answer to your question is mostly social. The word “press” is used as a symbol of social status. Blogsites mainly editorialize, but so do “members of the press” like Time or National Review magazines. Blogs are generally more casual, but the real difference lies in the illusion of press publications being bound to some formal standards that don’t apply to blogs.
It really is an illusion. When you think of “the press”, do gossip-happy and lie-telling tabloids strike you as being members equally alongside serious fact-based newspapers? The two’s forms are not so different, but their content is. Just as some web publications (like blogs) adhere to the standards we all know (without need of a Journalism Ethics class) while others do not, some print publications adhere to those rules while others do not. “Journalistic integrity” represents the exact same expectations that would apply outside of journalism (honesty, consideration, etc.). All “ethics” refers to is how moral guidelines are applied to a specific setting. Ethics don’t make one a journalist — dishonesty and other failures are just as common in journalism as anywhere else.
When we think of “the press”, we think of standards, but we also think of size. I doubt very much that a reporter for the New York Times would refer to a home-based, self-printed newspaper of some small town as journalism in the same sense that he/she practices journalism. There’s a snobbish element to “journalism” and “the press”. Trust me, I used to be a communications major. Like with many industries, “professionals” don’t like to believe their job can be picked up without a degree or corporate employment.
And that’s why only community managers will consider blogs as press anytime in the near future. We’re the little guy. We’re the uneducated (regardless if you really are), the uninitiated, the nobodies nextdoor who post diary entries online to feel important. The press is elitist idea. Your style of writing, the quality and frequency of content on your page… none of that sort of stuff will gain you entry into the club. GameTrailers might consider Kotaku to be “press”, but CBS and NBC surely don’t think that way. The internet’s changing the world rapidly, but I don’t expect a blogger to be widely considered press for at least another 5 years, if not 10 or 20.
Yeah, it turned into a rant, but hopefully a useful one. =P
September 9th, 2007 at 11:58 pm
I think Talyn brings up a great point–the press’s role is to report facts in an unbiased manner (FOX News excluded apparently). In this regard, I don’t think bloggers are “press” in the traditional sense of the term. The media (ideally) delivers as neutral an account of the facts as they can. The best blogs on the other hand are ripe with opinion and the individual blogger’s perspective. I look to sites like tentonhammer.com or MMORPG.com for the latest gaming news. I look to sites like this one for no-holds-barred, opinionated, impassioned perspectives about the subjects that more traditional “news” sites present in a relatively unbiased fashion. At the same time, editorialists are journalists just as much as reporters. But, if an MMORPG news site features a headline like “Developer X Releases Another Crappy, Subpar Title” I’d probably discredit that site as a credible source for news. With bloggers on the other hand, I’m looking for those types of strong opinions and the very things that I would dismiss as biased journalism from a straight-up news site. In my eyes, bloggers serve as the unadulterated voice of individual fans whereas conventional news sites should exist to give us “just the facts, ma’am.” Tradional media’s function is not to steer public opinion, simply give us the cold, hard facts that help us establish our own perspectives. It is the blogger, reviewer, or editorialist whose role it is to process this information and offer their own opinions that spark thought and debate. Should bloggers get press passes at gaming conventions? Absolutely. Should news sites blur the line between opinion and hard news? Absolutely not. Are bloggers press? Damned if I know.
September 10th, 2007 at 4:08 am
Personally I think most Bloggers ( I am not one even though I have tried) and Podcasters are not Press but somewhere in between the press and customer / user / punter ( British slang)
I sometimes think that Bloggers and Podcasters are like an industry expert that you sometimes get on the news – TV or written. They come on and give their opinion – sometimes this is bias and sometimes its not – but unlike the press they are not bound by a “code” to give an even , unbiased view.
However I do think when a blogger starts to write for news websites etc – they are then becoming or have become a member for the press.
Also (take Brent’s VirginWorlds podcast) – I think the way this is structured – he is very much like the press and is reporting the news with a little bit of editorial commentary.
Where as the people doing podcasts like Warp Drive Active, Voyages of Vanguard , Guildcast ..etc are not, in my opinion the press as there comments are taken from a gamers perspective.
September 10th, 2007 at 8:05 am
Bloggers that transmit news, opinion, or editorialize are “press” according to the definition given in the online dictionary.
“The collecting and publishing or broadcasting of news; journalism in general.
The entirety of media and agencies that collect, publish, transmit, or broadcast the news.
The people involved in the media, as news reporters, photographers, publishers, and broadcasters.
Commentary or coverage especially in print media.”
I come to these sites for information on the games I like. I consider this site and the many other blogs like it to be the “press.”
So when they ask you if your the Press in that next beta sign up you better check “yes.” LOL!
September 10th, 2007 at 8:11 am
Nope. Not in the general sense of Blogging.
September 10th, 2007 at 9:20 am
[...] Wants to Know, So We Answer by Brandon It seems like Darren is trying to stir up trouble asking if bloggers are considered press. Here’s the best way of saying it. Sometimes, yes. [...]
September 10th, 2007 at 9:33 am
are we press … are we getting paid to do this ??? if not then no, not press. more like a bunch of loud mouthed mmo groupies that like to get on our soap boxes and ‘discuss’ our views …
September 10th, 2007 at 11:22 am
[...] of The Common Sense Gamer wants to know “Are Bloggers Press?”. I’ve asked this question several times in my daily bloggings. Are bloggers really [...]
September 10th, 2007 at 11:45 am
[...] September 10th, 2007 in Linkage This is in response to Darren’s post over at Common Sense Gamer. My opinion: in a word, [...]
September 10th, 2007 at 12:31 pm
Here’s the way it works. Commentary sites such as this one, and mine, and Wilhelm’s, and MMOquests, etc. = NOT press. If you try to get a press pass into a convention there is a 95% chance you’ll be declined. You don’t host interviews here, and even though at times you do ‘advertise’ for companies – it is commentary based.
Sites like VirginWorlds, F13, Joystiq, 1up, TTH, Warcry – etc. are press. They are news aggregators, may or may not have paid journalists, and host interviews (written or recorded) with various developers.
Bottom line is regardless what you consider us “average” bloggers, we’re not press. The industry doesn’t consider us press. Even though we might fit the Webster definition, if the industry doesn’t consider us press than I say that’s a good thing.
Press = getting spammed with tons of random emails and phone calls asking for interviews with CEO’s of obscure startups looking for funding, etc.
Press = checking the ‘press box’ on the beta app forms, which means your chances of getting picked for a beta are about 10%.
Be thankful we’re just bloggers.
September 10th, 2007 at 12:38 pm
There are blogs I trust way more than CNN or FOX or CBS or PBS. As more traditional media more and more drops the ball on presenting us with “just the facts”, they are making room for others to step in and take that role away from them.
Now if you ask are blogs “first source” type news, not in general, though some are. There are some bloggers in Iraq right now reporting first hand. Our own major networks and AP and Reuters refuse to do this, instead relying on 2nd hand newswires from people they don’t know and haven’t vetted. The fact that with your average blogger their bias is clear is a good thing, with a newspaper or TV news it’s harder to see, and people don’t believe there is bias when what they see agrees with their world view, they see it as “just the facts”.
As Aaron points out, it’s more of an impression of professionalism which actually isn’t there in many cases, rather than who is gathering news and reporting what happens.
September 10th, 2007 at 2:26 pm
I suppose we should have nailed down the desired context of the term “press” before moving forward…
September 10th, 2007 at 2:26 pm
If I had to discern between those two choices only, I would have to say that blogging should not be classified as press.
Is there some gray area?
Yes, definitely.
Take Keen and Graev, a great bunch of guys that have been consistent in content and opinion. Do they do reviews? Sure. Have they done interviews? Mmm, maybe not. But by re-publishing interviews to a select audience, doesn’t that make them press in a way? I’m not saying they are journalists, but possibly a little dark corner of the press. Definitely not publishers, as pixie said: there is no money involved.
However, throw in search engine indexing and the ability for the common person to find your commentary three links below that of the developer’s own site and you cross into a whole new realm.
Personally, I see the blogging community as a neighborhood. I walk from one stoop to the next. I hang out for a bit, have a beer with the owner, talk about the widow Johnson, then I head on down the street. We may talk some serious trash or we may talk some serious thought, but it means little in terms of change or impact as our conversation truly only appeals to each other.
September 10th, 2007 at 2:32 pm
I would agree with you–we aren’t press, at least not yet. A lot of blogs are too biased or cater to too few readers to be actively considered press; a few of the bigger blogs are border lining an online op-ed magazine, but even they aren’t press yet.
September 10th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
No deadlines, no restrictions on what we can talk about, no pay, no publishing rights = not press.
Do we as bloggers have an impact on mmo’s ? do we have the power to influence people buying into games ? do we have a the potential to reach the masses ? … sure we do, or some of us do.
Blogging is a whole different unregulated non professional endeavour that falls in a grey area … the moment we are considered press, down will come the hammer of restrictions, compliance etc and we can kiss our little corners of the internet goodbye …
I’m glad we are not considered press …
September 10th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
Nope.
September 10th, 2007 at 3:29 pm
Well, it depends on which blog maybe.
Courts have decided that a blog can publish Apple’s information without retribution from Apple. = protection just like the press
The FEC has decided not to consider blogs with the same restrictions on speech about candidates as the press = protection of private speakers not the press
Press passes been given out to bloggers? Yes that has happened.
So.. it’s still finding some middle ground. The major media networks, cable, papers, and news wires are continually dropping the ball on delivering “just the facts”. The fact that bloggers wear their bias on their sleeves is in many ways something good, along the lines of full disclosure. AP and Reuters writers don’t tell you their biases, but they are still present. The more these traditional news sources don’t deliver “just the facts” the more alternative sources will take over.
Now if you want to say “are they pundits or journalists” then that’s different, but many pundits in the traditional press are also merely pundits not journalists. That’s what editorial pages are, but those people are considered part of the press as well because they’re not self published, but many are less informed about issues and have less education and experience than the most popular blogs. So that is day by day becoming less of a stamp of approval or profesionalism. As Aaron states, it’s an illusion that we are slowly peeling away.
September 10th, 2007 at 3:51 pm
If you make your thoughts, impressions, observations or views available publicly, you’re “press.” You might be crappy press, but so be it. Pick up a tabloid or alternative news rag and see what I mean. Simply having an opinion or “alternative content” doesn’t exclude you. What excludes you from getting a press pass is, as Cuppy alluded to, simply whether you matter to those handing them out.
Brent probably matters because he garners a lot of eyeballs. I don’t.
Lots of discussion about “objective reporting” or “getting paid to do it” etc are myths. If you don’t need some kind of license to publish all such notions are aspirational.
/rant on
Objectivity is a myth and an insulting lie. Its when the point of view or perspective is couched in the marketing of “objectivity” (i.e., believe this as unquestionable fact) that it becomes insidious. When opinion or point of view is transparent, its content can be weighed and evaluated for what it is by intelligent media consumers.
/rant off
Hard to say Thomas Paine wasn’t press and he was probably the most influential “blogger” or alternative media publisher of his day. He also couldn’t get a press pass.
Sooner or later, when some blogs matter, the gate keepers will recognize them and welcome them to the fold.
September 10th, 2007 at 4:09 pm
[...] Darren, the strapping common sense gamer raises the following question to generate further discussion on an upcoming suwt cast: Are bloggers press? [...]
September 10th, 2007 at 4:56 pm
[...] at The Common Sense Gamer is on his “big question” horse again. Today he wants to know if bloggers are members [...]
September 10th, 2007 at 5:00 pm
The ‘press’ that I know are not the ‘objective’ bunch we all like to believe. Stories & news are ‘coloured’ by opinion all the time in papers, magazines etc. I think the term ‘press’ should be avoided…let us as bloggers claim a better term, the free press.
September 10th, 2007 at 5:18 pm
I was very tempted to say that potshot and I’m really glad you did because that truly sums up my feelings on this. However, as DM Osbon said, a better tern should be coined to encompass that which we truly are, free writers. Being a user of a free service to express my views and thoughts, I can see no better word.
September 10th, 2007 at 5:39 pm
No, bloggers arent press in any way shape or form.
Sorry
September 10th, 2007 at 6:21 pm
[...] that’s my (brief) answer to Darren’s recent question over at Common Sense Gamer. Now please, I’m working on a deadline here people! Lois! [...]
September 10th, 2007 at 7:17 pm
Yes, bloggers are press in every way, shape, or form.
Sorry.
September 10th, 2007 at 7:28 pm
This is great guys. Just wanted to thank all of you who commented and blogged about this….I really appreciate it. More than enough content for the show 9.
September 10th, 2007 at 7:31 pm
Ha! I think it depends on which blogger you’re talking about, if any are at all. There are certainly some bloggers who can make a good case why they as individuals should be *treated like* press, because they have a lot of influence or write well or both. Me, I barely qualify as a blogger, let alone press.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:07 pm
There are a lot of facets to “press” as a whole. What most of us are is “editorialists”. Nothing more. Then again, the way the real media handles its “press” these days, there’s not a whole lot of real press (the kind that offers nothing more than facts) left these days. Everything seems slanted with opinion. And honestly, that’s not the problem. The problem is that 90% of out country, or even the world, can’t distinguish opinion from fact.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:35 pm
It is certainly interesting to how different people define the term “press.” Some people seem to have very restrictive notions of it, despite evidence to the contrary.
A couple of years back, at a National Press Club event, I heard a woman from the Washington Post state that Matt Drudge was most certainly not a member of “the press.” She objected to the fact that he did not have an editor and could, thus, write write whatever he pleased!
The mere thought of somebody writing sans editor! He might not even be using the AP Book of Style! It gives me the vapors!
September 11th, 2007 at 10:15 am
[...] Press or Not to Press? Bloggers have been asked by Darren over at Common Sense Gamer , if they would classify themselves as members of the [...]
September 11th, 2007 at 10:17 am
I’ve posted a response on my site. Sorry, I don’t know how to do that fancy link thingie yet lol
September 11th, 2007 at 10:23 am
Are bloggers being censored in some countries? Does the First Amendment protect bloggers?
Content and quality are irrelevant to answering Darren’s original question.
September 11th, 2007 at 10:50 am
http://sweetflag.wordpress.com/links/
linked your post under Interesting reading…;)
September 11th, 2007 at 4:19 pm
I asked that same question on the eq2-daily forums as i was in the middle of signing an NDA for game (and or expansion). Here a link to the topic on the forms from last month
http://www.eq2daily.com/discuss/viewtopic.php?t=2301&highlight=press
I don’t know the government will give you the same protection as a member of the press but so in a way that is saying your press.
But i don’t think your really press unless your getting paid for it. A game blogger pretty much is saying the same thing he/she would be saying on forums about the game or to there friends about the game. And telling something to your friends about a game doesn’t make you press.
We also as bloggers are not accountable. If someone in the press give a good game a very very very bad review because they hate the company. They can be fired, there could even be legal action against the company. If i go out on my blog and say the WOW dev eat the brains of live children out of there head, and buying there game supports there child brain eating habbits. No one going to hold me accountable, there just going to think i was drunk when i was posting.
September 11th, 2007 at 5:06 pm
Saying bloggers are press is like saying forum posters are press. Anyone and everyone has a blog these days and you’re just posting your opinions out there. People do that every day on forums, what’s the difference?
September 12th, 2007 at 8:04 am
Well, I guess it depends on the forum.
While I am sure that if you post some leaked information about a new ship in the POTBS forum you would face censure, the same information would be welcomed with open arms at F13.
November 6th, 2007 at 6:37 am
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