A new venture from the Austin-based Pluck corporation has created some seemingly unusual bedfellows: bloggers and traditional media.
Pluck's BlogBurst blog syndication network will allow traditional media outlets to publish blogs from writers in the BlogBurst network to news Web sites and print publications in the coming weeks.
Six publishers or publications, including three from Texas, have signed up to use BlogBurst blogs as supplements to their current content: The Washington Post, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Houston Chronicle, the San Antonio Express-News, the Austin American-Statesman and Gannett, publisher of USA Today.
"It's really a way of bringing blogs into the mainstream media," said Heidi Johnson, a public relations representative at Pluck.
Johnson said bloggers in the network would be identified by their blog's name when entries run in other publications.
The blogs mainly would be run as opinion and features-type content, but would not be restricted to that area.
It ultimately comes down to the editors' discretion if they want to use the blogs on the BlogBurst network, Johnson said.
Although bloggers are encouraged to abide by certain presentation rules when creating content possibly for publication, blog writers can choose to write their blog however they wish. Validation of facts or editorial influence on bloggers are not built into the program.
"That is not the intent here," Johnson said.
Johnson said content from BlogBurst writers most likely would be clearly distinguished on participating Web sites.
"It looks like it offers publishers the opportunity to kind of come up with some different content," said Ed Youngblood, an assistant professor of electronic media and communications.
The diversity of topics blogs cover (BlogBurst reports 700 "top bloggers") can add voices not usually heard in traditional publications, Youngblood said, while simultaneously giving exposure to the authors in more widespread publications.
"It's got the possibility for somebody that's into blogging - kind of being the entrée into making their blog popular," he said.
Youngblood said he finds blog authors he likes and then continually return to their sites.
The amalgamation of different blogs and possibility of a different blogger posted to a news site every week may provide a diversity of content, but would not necessarily appeal to everyone, Youngblood said.
Editors of other papers may not readily embrace the service, as the hands-off approach gives the publications little-to-no control when it comes to publishing the blogs, other than selecting which ones to publish.
Featuring the more common opinions-based blogs may be less problematic than publishing blogs with news content, as bloggers may not follow a publication's required journalistic guidelines when writing their entries.
"If it extends into the journalistic reporting realm away from pure opinion and comment, I'd be highly leery with publishing something without verifying where it came from," said Robert Wernsman, a Texas Tech journalism instructor and former newspaper editor.
Wernsman said the service would be good for bloggers to get exposure and also for publications to weed out which blogs to use for content.
It can be daunting to sort through the thousands of blogs looking for alternative viewpoints or unheard voices, Wernsman said, and the way BlogBurst acts as an agent between its member bloggers and publishers would alleviate this complication for publishers, who could then pass on the content to its readers.
Another advantage for the publications is the lower cost of subscribing to BlogBurst as opposed to hiring a full-time reporter.
BlogBurst does not pay its bloggers, although a rewards system for the top bloggers - those being consistently selected for publication - is being developed for implementation later this year.
Although there are some restrictions, bloggers can syndicate their blogs with BlogBurst regardless of which blogging platform they use by signing up at www.blogburst.com.
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