Educator, observer, or magpie, what type of law blogger are you?
Jon Bernstein (@jon_bernstein), a digital media consultant and writer, asks in the Guardian today, “What kind of blogger are you?“
He sees four blogging archetypes worth exploring, the educator, the observer, the polemicist, and the magpie. A good law blogger could fall into any one of these categories, though you’ll see why we don’t have many polemicists.
The educator:
An expert in his or her field who simplifies and contextualises, the educator provides a valuable resource and a companion piece to the conventional coverage of an issue or an ongoing news story seen elsewhere. From a publisher’s point of view, the educator’s contributions will provide a long tail of traffic over time and reinforces the brand as one to be trusted. For this to work in practice, the educator really does have to have expertise and combine it with the ability to write in plain English. A rarity.
Many law bloggers are educators, though there is always the challenge of writing in plain English. Lawyers have real expertise and their niche blogs cover areas of the law that until now have gone uncovered. Think Florida Probate Litigation Blog. No question such lawyers are establishing a brand for themselves and their blog as trusted and reliable sources.
The observer:
The educator’s cousin, the observer watches, listens and assimilates before offering informed insight and analysis. The observer will happily link out to another’s expert view, not simply claim a monopoly on wisdom. The observer plays well on social media and that in turn requires a level of trust in the blog author and that he or she has a high level of industry knowledge and understanding.
More law bloggers fall into the observer category than any other. Lawyers watch for legal news. Cases, codes, and regulations. There are countless reactionary blogs reporting legal developments. The problem with most of these bloggers is they tend to just summarize and offer little insight and analysis These reactionary bloggers don’t link out to other law blogs for fear they’ll send traffic and attention away.
The polemicist:
Provocative, opinionated, and contrarian, the polemicist gets noticed, generates traffic and starts a conversation. The web loves (and hates) an opinion as much as “the view from nowhere” appears to leave it cold. The polemicist must contend with alienating and attracting people in equal measure.
Provocative, opinionated, and contrarian? Perhaps over a drink, but not on the legal blogosphere. Lawyers are afraid they’ll offend some with speaking their mind. What will my partners think? What if I offend a client? What if an opposing party attempts to use my views against me?
That hasn’t stopped some law bloggers who have drawn national and international attention from straight talk. Think Cruise Law News, Marler Blog (food safety), China Law Blog, and Simple Justice.
The magpie:
Perhaps the most interesting archetype, the blogging magpie is a scavenger who gathers up and curates the best of the web and adds a layer of insight, analysis or opinion. Unlike the educator or observer, the magpie is not looking to generate unique content, rather to become a conduit to the most compelling content out there – a trusted curator. The magpie edits the web so you don’t have to.
We don’t have many law blogger magpies. That’s unfortunate as the magpie may represent the truest, easiest, and most effective form of blogging.
Listening to sources and subjects in a RSS reader, sharing the best of what you’ve seen, and offering your take.
The result is learning, serving as an intelligence agent on a niche, networking with the thought leaders you are citing. You’re networking online in a way that builds relationships and word of mouth. It’s also a heck of lot easier to share what you’re following like this than writing article-like blog posts.
The biggest magpie around is me. Almost everything I blog comes from something I saw in my RSS reader and shared on Twitter. Look at this blog post.
Admittedly, I blend in my insight, educate, and candor. I fall a little into each category.
Good law bloggers could fall into any of these categories and, like me, be more than one type.
Key for bloggers aspiring to be a good blogger though is to look at what Bernstein has to say. Plain English, citing other bloggers, niche versus general, insight as opposed to summaries, straight talk, and listening to the best of the web in your niche are some of things that’ll get you there.
Image courtesy of Flickr by Brad Smith