Going Gonzo
A blog can be built and maintained with little to no web development skills, and in some cases you don't even need a domain or hosting service. Often, when speaking to people about their blogs, they tell me that blogging allows them to connect with their readers on a much more personal level. Even professional bloggers use a more relaxed style of writing, in the first-person singular tense. Blogging is one of the few mediums where "Going Gonzo" is the point. If you're not familiar with this term, it was coined in 1970 by the (in)famous Dr. Hunter S. Thompson when explaining his first-person singular approach to journalism. Thompson had the ability to weave himself into the storyline in a way that made him a part of it. For all literary intent and purpose, he could also be credited with providing the very definition of the word disambiguation.
Gonzo Journalism is all about the delivery. The story itself may be rather bland or blase, but if the writer has the freedom to incorporate his/her own unique style, sensory perception, and opinion - now you're talking entertainment! The focus of the story can become blurred, or even shift entirely, from the story to the writer.
For an example, consider the opening monologue of any late night television show. Most of the hosts hit on the top news stories of the day, but accuracy isn't their focus. They use humor, emotion, and personal opinion to make their own points in regards to the news story. Gonzo journalism is very similar to this same approach. The writer's beliefs and reaction to the story becomes equally - if not more - important than the story itself.
So if blogging allows us all to go Gonzo, how weird is this for the reader? In the words of Thompson himself, "It was never weird enough for me." For the most part, the readers of blogs are generally not looking for the hard hitting facts or the dry delivery of the mainstream press. They prefer a personal touch, and an element of entertainment with their information. Blogging breaks all the rules of journalism, yet no matter how weird it gets, it continues to gain reader momentum and world attention. Technorati indexes over 1.5 million new blog posts a day, and blog posts in the BlogBurst network are being picked up by Reuters, USA Today, and Fox News. There are city blog conventions, statewide conventions, and even worldwide blogging conventions. So the next time your course Instructor or publisher frowns on your first-person singular article, tell him/her you were simply Going Gonzo!