Bias in the Blogosphere Paraphrase: Weblogging is still controlled by the establishment, no matter how much we believe we're free. I love the style of the linktext, and some of the points and arguments, but I can't agree with the conclusion that "This new medium is the domain of white, middle-class American men, and severe structural barriers restrict access by other groups." I think the conclusions give far too much weight to the circle of blogs that follow Glen Reynolds and Andrew Sullivan. Maybe its just me but I'm exposed to far more left wing women's blogs, than right wing male blogs, and I'm a middle-class male with conservative leanings. I believe what's being scrutinized here is the political pundit blog which of course will have an ideological bias in the current political climate.

As for the severe structural barriers, this issue brings up questions I asked the panel - Is there a type of person more suited to be able to write a long-running weblog? Obviously someone who already spends time on the Web, and a sense of curiousity is required but are other characteristics necessary? Whatever other traits may be needed, they certainly aren't exclusive to the middle-class American male.

And other barriers? The obvious corporate or military restrictions bring up the question of blogging anonymously, which AKMA explained is ethically impossible. So if you can't blog anonymously, how do we personally publish any information that can be potentially damning to the author, be it corporate whistle-blowing or a political view not considered 'mainstream'?

Robert Corr's conclusion from the article: "If the internet is not an inherently democratic technology, what can be done to rectify the situation? Clearly it is in the interests of society to ensure that all groups have a voice. The operation of the propaganda model in the blogosphere, where the influence of power and wealth is not immediately evident, shows that this will not naturally occur."

This question was directed to the panel, in a sense by Kurt Heintz. His question was more related more to how can we create an such an open ecology within a community or organization, rather than towards the entire Internet. The panel was stumped.