Interview with Maree Curtis.
Program Director of Journalism, RMIT.

1.      What role does blogging fill in the modern news media landscape?

The media has engaged with blogging and every newsroom now employs it as part of their daily routine.  It is a wonderful way for readers / viewers / listeners to interact with media organisations.


2.      How viable is blogging as an alternative to conventional news media

(What does it add? What does it not have?)?

I don't believe blogging is an alternative to conventional news media.  It is part of modern journalism and provides interactivity - no longer are readers / viewers / listeners a passive audience.


But at its essence, blogging is opinion - sometimes expert and knowlegable, often not - and while opinion sharing is valid, it does not replace quality journalism, i.e. clear, fair and balanced reporting of information.  Something that defines journalism from blogging and opinion is access, i.e. access to people most people don't have access to.


3.      Would you agree that, since the intitial rise of blogging and

citizen journalism in the late nineties, the threat of blogging to
conventional news media has now subsided and the two forms of
conventional news media/journalism and blogging/citizen journalism now
have reached somewhat of an equilibrium?

I never believed that blogging and CJ were real threats to conventional news media. After some initial slowness, the traditional media has recognised that blogging, CJ, social media etc are here to stay and we are now seeing mainstream media embracing and incorporating these into journalism.  I always believed that after the initial flurry things would settle down, there is a place for both conventional journalism and blogging.


4.      Have you yourself ever entered into the blogging arena? If so what

was your experience? If not, is there any particular reason why?

I am a very, very occasional reader of blogs.  That said, I've never been a huge reader of the opinion pages in newspapers either, unless the person writing is an expert or has something in particular to offer.  As a journalist, I am more interested in fact than opinion.  Quite frankly, the large majority of blogs, twitter and other social media bores me senseless!