New blogging trend

A blog is also called as web logs or weblogs. It is a publication of personal thoughts, ideas or journals and web links that allow people to share with others (Marketing.com, 2010). A blogs is also similar to a personal online diary. It is a mixture of what is happening in a person's life, and what is happening in on the web or in the society (Marketing.com, 2010). In the year 1997, John Barger named 'weblog' as the new form of websites that are usually operated by one person and update with regular entries of any topic that the person wants to share with others (Blood, 2000).

According to Master New Media (2007), the blogsphere nowadays is 70 million weblogs wide. About 120,000 new blogs are created each day and around 1.5 million posts are posted each day. The result of the survey also shows that 1.4 new blogs are created every second and 17 posts are made every second. It took 320 days to grow from 35 to 75 million blogs.

People often blog for expressing their feelings as well as sharing their thoughts or views with the rest. Besides that, there are also many blogs are created for business, travel and politics purposes. The blogging trend in Malaysia is different from the Europe's blogging trend. Blogs are normally used on topic such as business and travelling in Europe while Malaysia's blogging trend focus more on personal and political purposes (Best European Blog, 2007). 

Example of Political Blog

(Source: Anwar Ibrahim 2009)

Example of Personal Blog
(Source:Esther Wee 2010)

With the existence of blogs nowadays, many people had switched from mainstream media to online blogs for alternative news. For example, political blogs in Malaysia provides alternative news to the people in the country and encourage them to participate in the political discussion. The political blogs promotes participation of people in debating political issues which in turn promotes democrary in people (Lievrouw et. al, 2006).

Conclusion, it can't be deny that blogs are now part of the new generation media and they have wielded great influence and swayed the thinking among the Malaysians. Blogs are growing in a very fast pace in the society as it provides people a change to express themselves by blogging whatever they want to.

References:

• 'Best European Blogs' 2007, viewed 18th April 2010, <http://europe.blogranking.eu/>
• Blogs leave mainstream media sweating 2009, Malaysiakini, viewed 18th April 2010, <http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/114582>
• Blood, R 2000, 'Weblogs: A History and Perspective', Rebecca's Pocket, viewed 18th April 2010, <http://www.rebeccablood.net/essays/weblog_history.html>
• Lievrouw, L. A & Livingstone, S. M 2006, Handbook of new media: social shaping and social consequences of ICTs, 2nd edn, viewed 17th April 2010, <http://books.google.com.my/books?id=P9HkFWEwfFUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=lievrouw#v=onepage&q=&f=false>
• Marketingterms.com 2009, viewed 17th April 2010, <http://www.marketingterms.com/dictionary/blog/>
• Master New Media 2007, Blog Usage Statistics and Tresnds: Technorati State of the Blogsphere-Q4 2009, viewed 17th April 2010, <http://www.masternewmedia.org/news/2007/04/06/blog_usage_statistics_and_trends.htm>