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Political blogs are among the most common forms of blogs. Most political blogs are news driven, and as such political bloggers will link to articles from news web sites, often adding their own comments as well.
Types of political blog
Political blogs in the US often have an open and well-defined liberal or conservative bias. Many political blogs in the UK frequently publish articles, rumours and news from various angles, or with a general anti-establishment bias. Blog enthusiasts often tout the openness of biases in the blogosphere as opposed to the supposed impartiality of "mainstream" sources, which they consider to be a sham. In return, many in the more established branches of the media criticize political bloggers for their anonymity and their lack of factual reliability. Most bloggers counter that what many pundits say also is not reliable.
Some political blogs heavily feature original commentary, with occasional hyperlinks to back up the blogger's talking points. Many of these blogs comment on whatever interests the author, as befits the blogger's political leanings, personal knowledge base, and momentary interests.
One notable subspecies of political blog is the watch blog, a blog which sets out to criticize what the author considers systematic errors or bias in an online newspaper or news site—or perhaps even by a more popular blogger. These blogs occupy a niche market, although a scandal involving their chosen subject may elevate them to momentary importance.
Political blogs in Australia
These do not have the same notoriety as blogs in the United States for "breaking stories" or potentially ruining the reputations of politicians or journalists. They have also not attracted the same mainstream media attention which comes along with those activities.
There are five Australian political blogs which are predominately psephological in focus; ABC Elections, Mumble, Oz Politics, Poll Bludger and Psephos. Most of the other blogs are single writers efforts which focus on political commentary from a consistent political view point.
Political blogs in the United States
Impact on US politics
While many countries have political blogs, the impact of such blogs on political discourse is most prominent in US politics.The first major scandal that blogs participated in involved remarks made by then U.S. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, when the senator remarked that U.S. Senator and former presidential candidate Strom Thurmond, who ran on a segregationist platform in 1948, would have made a good president. The continued attention of bloggers, such as Josh Marshall, kept the story alive and drew media attention not only to the event itself, but Lott's previous comments along the same lines and association with groups like the Council of Conservative Citizens.
Political blogs attracted further attention as a result of their use by two political candidates in 2003: Howard Dean and Wesley Clark. Both gained political buzz on the Internet, and particularly among bloggers, before they were taken seriously as candidates by traditional media outlets. Joe Trippi, Dean's campaign manager, made the Internet a particular focus of the campaign. Both candidates stumbled in the end, but were, at one time or another, thought of as front runners for the Democratic nomination. Senator John Kerry, the eventual Democratic nominee in 2004, maintained a blog on his own campaign site, as did his opponent, President George W. Bush.
Notable American political blogs and bloggers
Below are the top 10 political blogs from The TTLB Blogosphere Ecosystem
- Instapundit
- Michelle Malkin
- Daily Kos
- Power Line
- Little Green Footballs
- Captain's Quarters
- Talking Points Memo
- Hugh Hewitt
- Mudville Gazette
- Wizbang!
See also
"Political blog"