What's It All About

So why am adding to the slew of blogs haunting cyberspace? What do I have to say that has been said before? The answer, simply put, is that this blog is part of a quarter-long assignment for my COMM 142B: Digital Journalism class. From what I can tell, its suppose to introduce us to this new phenomena of citizen journalism - how ordinary people are delivering news and information without jumping the hurdles of traditional publishing. 

I find it the assignment interesting, given the direction the industry is going. Perhaps it plays to the adage, "If you can't beat them, join them."

In terms of content, I'll be analyzing the structure, layout, content, functionality and interactivity of six different online publications in order to better understand the direction this new medium is taking journalism. I'll review top blogs like the Huffington Post and Pajamas Media, community-specific blogs like This Iranian American Life and Beirut Spring, traditional news medias like The New York Times Online and BBC Online (if you couldn't tell by now, I have an interest in international politics, specifically in areas in and around the Middle East.)

Sit back, enjoy and please post any comments or questions you may have.