Glory Days

by digby

It would appear that the days of the single, old country blogger like myself are definitely on the wane. I would guess that within just a few years there won't be more than a handful of the sole proprietor, uncredentialed bloggers of today even cited anymore, although there may be a few who survive with communities and a large readership.

I'm not surprised. The form is cheap and immediate and big media are desperately trying to find ways to stay relevant. It was only a matter of time before they co-opted the scene. But the barriers to entry are so low that it's hard to imagine that there won't inevitably be somebody crashing the party with something different. There's always an appetite for a new voice or a new format. But in the end, the blogosphere will probably end up dominated by corporate media and big money financed entrepreneurial projects. Same as it ever was.


Update: It should be noted that these ranking are based upon recent incoming links. I've always been rather dependent on links for traffic, so a drop in links actually means something. Others like Atrios never have been. In fact, there is still no greater traffic generator than an Atrios link, even today, and that includes a link from the NY Times or the Politico or any other blog. It's all in how you look at it.


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