There are a number of important summaries of BloggerCon written by some of the participants.
Esther Dyson, who is slowly feeling her personal way into the weblog world, captures the crucial point: “The first magic of blogging, of course, is that everyone can self-publish. Everyone has a voice. The tools makes that possible. But the next magic, much harder to achieve, is that everyone wants to be listened to.”
Jay Rosen from NYU made many of the most telling interventions in the discussions on Saturday. He has posted a fascinating reflection on the significance of nytimes.com’s Len Apcar’s involvement at BloggerCon.
“Apcar had asked himself a disciplined question; in fact, the type of question outsiders to the Times rarely know how to ask. Not, ‘what would be a cool weblog to see in the New York Times?’ which is fun but too easy. Rather: which version of the emergent thing might actually work, even flourish, within the relatively cautious editorial environment and weighty decision machinery that Apcar contends with at the Times? Factor in all the talent one could tap . but to do what? Plus all the competition that could be unleashed but competition at what? Plus the subtle politics of moving into it. Plus the fact that the Times will take risks, but only up to a point. Have any ideas about that, head bloggers in heady times?”
Jenny Levine, who was on my education panel, provides the full details of the points she was making on Saturday. Her six points are essential reading for people interested in the role of weblogs and education.