On December 16, 2010 the PEW Internet & American Life Project released a report on the percentages of people from each marketing group that use the internet and the kinds of activities they take part in. Some of the results were interesting. For example, the number of people aged 74 and up (the G.I. Generation) using social networks like Facebook and online services like online banking has noticeably increased. There is also an increase in people age 46 to 64 (Baby Boomers) listening to music online, which was previously an activity that mostly X’ers and Millenials took part in. Across the spectrum internet activities have increased in all groups, but what caught my attention was that blogging in the Millennial group had decreased. The report suggested that activity that was usually blogged is now being communicated through social networks.
From the point of view of a working designer that tries to maintain a blog, this makes a lot of sense. A blog can be a very effective form of communication, but using the platform takes time and some level of expertise. Social networks have designed their platforms to be incredibly easy to use. Social networks are also constantly adding new features that make the experience more immersive. But I don’t think blogs are going fall off the face of the internet, because social networks have tailored their platforms around a different form of human interaction.
I have a Facebook account and like most I check it at least once a day (OK, more like 5 times a day), but there are a lot of things I do not share on Facebook. I don’t post my work from college, or any material from work. On Facebook I don’t write long notes, and I try not to write long posts or comments. To use a metaphor, Facebook is a party where everyone is sharing stories, pictures and opinions that spark conversations. This is very important part of the human experience, so I don’t mean to discredit it. But if Facebook is a party, then a blog is an interview at a calm coffee shop. There’s more room for longer and more in depth forms of expression, and – just like an interview – they provide a better picture of the person.
Blogs are where I go to get information that has more substance than that generally found on Facebook, but that lacks the structure and editorial hierarchy of a newspaper. I like to subscribe to the RSS feeds of blogs from colleagues from Art Center and the design industry. I like to comb through archives and see the history of blog posts. I enjoy seeing how other people write and present their work and events. I spend a lot of time writing a blog post (mainly because I’m more of a tactile and visual person) so I assume that time has been taken to write the blog post I am reading. Before social networks became so popular, blogs were the platform for sharing conversations, stories and photos as well as written and visual work. If Facebook has redirected some of the more casual personal communication away from blogs, then I am looking forward to seeing blogs become the internet’s go-to format for substance.
