An Oregon judge has ruled that a Montana blogger is not eligible for the legal protections afforded to journalists, letting stand a $2.5 million defamation verdict. At the end of the Ars Technica article there's a link to a Forbes article that contains some more details and the text of an email that didn't help the blogger's case.
posted by veedubya on Dec 9, 2011 - 53 comments

"You’d be crazy not to buy that. I mean, look at it. IT’S FULL OF WHIMSY."
posted by zarq on Jun 24, 2011 - 258 comments

[Warning: some links NSFW] Callgirl and blogger Alexa DiCarlo had some questions raised about her authenticity dating back to 2008 and 2009, but her website RealPrincessDiaries.com (archive.org cache) still attracted huge traffic and she was even named the #1 sex blogger of 2010. A student at SFSU's master's degree program in sexuality studies, she also volunteered her time providing sex education advice to teenagers online under the name Caitlain or Cathy. And she mentored newbie sex workers via e-mail, giving them pro tips and even sharing with them one of her top clients, Matt, whose identity and safety she vouched for. But in true Kaycee Nicole / JT LeRoy style, it now turns out there wasn't any "Alexa", "Caitlain", or "Cathy". Outed by the anonymous blog Expose A Bro, combined with the anonymous twitter account @ExposingAlexa, the real story has emerged. Alexa was apparently a married middle-aged guy named Pat, not a student at SFSU, had no formal training from which to be sharing "advice" (or naked photos!) with those teenagers online, and he was the "client" that "Alexa" had sent to her protégées to sleep with... [more inside]
posted by Asparagirl on Nov 22, 2010 - 188 comments

This has not been a good week for woman of color blogging. About two weeks ago, Black Femi Power, a well-read woman of color blogger, resigned her blog in protest to an incident wherein Amanda Marcotte, a notable white feminist blogger, was accused of appropriating BFP's ideas. On the heels of the controversy that had reverberations in the feminist blogosphere which are far from forgotten, Marcotte is releasing and promoting a new book, with a new cover to replace the old one after outcries that it was racist.
posted by lunit on Apr 23, 2008 - 140 comments

In the same spirit as the Open Net Initiative and Committee to Protect Bloggers that both track global internet filtering, Sami ben Gharbia's Access Denied Map tries to track the blocking of sites like Blogger, Flickr, YouTube and others by governments, as well as efforts by activists to keep them accessible or to challenge their blockage.
posted by Blazecock Pileon on Nov 19, 2007 - 5 comments

In 2004 some proposed that "bloggers" be named TIME's Persons of the Year. In 2007 Business Week reveals "How Top Bloggers Earn Money" and how much.
posted by ericb on Jul 18, 2007 - 36 comments

Casey Serin (discussed on MeFi here), the world's most hated blogger according to CNET, has taken down his "I Am Facing Foreclosure" blog. Why? Speculation abounds among his fans and foes alike. Did the law catch up to him? Was it a result of a crayon-penned contract with his wife? The "real estate bubble's" poster boy has inspired others to create a Caseypedia, to write copious blog entries of their own, and even to host "talkcasts" that function a little like memorial services in the emptiness that follows the sure (?) demise of Serin's own Foreclosure Fridays call-in, chat-in sessions. There's even one tonight!
posted by houseofdanie on Jun 1, 2007 - 49 comments

Hey, Chinabounder ... There's 14,608,512 guys outside wanna have a chat with you! A self-described Western scoundrel in Shanghai [racey text] seems to be creating the biggest backlash against foreign devils since the Boxer Rebellion. Said to be an expat English tutor, he's been seducing women and writing up lurid accounts on his blog and shocking the indignant and conservative populace. Now there's a growing effort to track him down as the drama unfolds.
posted by RavinDave on Aug 29, 2006 - 53 comments

Microsoft won't delete blogs without proper legal notice. Microsoft has changed its blog censorship policy, previously discussed on MeFi.
posted by b1tr0t on Jan 31, 2006 - 11 comments

Google blogger fired. Mark Jen, a blogger whose candid (but oh-so-inane) comments about life on the job at Google sparked controversy last month, has left the company. Do no evil. Blog no evil. And so forth.
posted by aliendolphin on Feb 8, 2005 - 27 comments

Blogs are a phenomenon. Technorati, a blog search engine, tracks 6,406,667 blogs. Two years ago, it tracked 100,000. About 27% of adults now read blogs, up from 2% in 2003. But really they're nothing new, says Kevin Maney in USA Today.
posted by rushmc on Jan 26, 2005 - 35 comments

Jeff Johnson wants to know what Pete Coors has to say.
posted by yerfatma on Nov 4, 2004 - 15 comments

The Emotional Costs of Fidelity
I recently came across Suburban Sex Blog, the blog of a 30-something, married with children, sexually deprived male suburban dweller who posts about the frustrations of having a wife who just doesn't want sex. After reading this entry where his wife tells him to just "get over it" after he confronts her about the complete lack of sexual contact between the two of them for months, I knew I'd found a blog that I'd be checking in on frequently. Guys blogging about their sex lives is nothing new you might think, but instead of filling their blogs with macho bragging about their conquests, there's a growing number of good blogs where married guys are opening their hearts about the insecurities, depressions and fear that goes with trying hard to make a marriage work instead of giving into the temptation of cheating.

After going through some of these issues myself while my wife was going through a period of depression I know first hand how an emotionally distant wife can wreak havoc with everything from one's self-esteem, concentration and general mental well being. These blogs put things into a perspective that many men refuse to share, and many women never even suspect.
posted by DragonBoy on Jun 11, 2004 - 133 comments

Blah Blah Blogging :: "The following is a meticulously detailed recap of a news segment that appeared on the Chicago FOX news affiliate on Wednesday, May 5th, 2004." -- Intelligent blogger agrees to appear in puff piece about blogging for FOX news. These are the results.
posted by anastasiav on May 12, 2004 - 43 comments

The Hasidic Rebel. A blogger from inside the Hasidic community provides some insight into a lifestyle few are familiar with.
posted by srboisvert on Jul 17, 2003 - 11 comments

Flaoting Wreckage: Jettisoned Cargo has ceased to be. Often it was the only place you would need to visit, so good were the links it provided. Hats off to Kirk Smith, I can barely comprehend that it was a solo operation. I feel quite bereft. There is still plenty to look at though, he just isn't updating.
posted by Fat Buddha on Jul 2, 2003 - 3 comments

Chief Wiggles -- Straight from Iraq. Lost amid the writings of Salam Pax and Lt. Smash, a small voice, an author with a depth of feeling quietly leaves his words on the web for family and friends to read. His prose evoke feelings and draw you into his world of flies, heat and sand. A worthwhile read for all. (via Brain graze.)
posted by Baesen on Jun 7, 2003 - 21 comments

Iranian blogger arrested Sina Motallebi, well-known blogger and journalist was arrested this morning. He is accused of threatening the national security by giving interviews to Persian language radios outside Iran, wrtiting articles both in newspapers and his weblog. His weblog, WebGard (i.e. web surfer), was among the top 5 Persian most popular weblogs while his wife, Farnaz, has her own weblog, mostly writing about their newly-born baby boy, Mani. [via jj]
posted by dagny on Apr 20, 2003 - 12 comments

Hungry? Got a couple of minutes and a quarter? Ramen Noodles! The "Official" Home Page, complete with recipies. Not to mention, the history, and inedible uses.
posted by angry modem on Dec 2, 2002 - 21 comments

*tiptoe in*
*carefully and gingerly point out Douglas Rushkoff's Mideast blog entries as objective, detached viewpoint on the whole ugly mess*
*tiptoe out, thanking cris for the link, and apologizing for the Mideast link, but hey, it's good*
posted by solistrato on Apr 19, 2002 - 7 comments

Dack is back, but not in the blogging sense. Many here at MeFi thought he'd bring his blog back after it ceased in May. His front page is now a collection of links urging peaceful resolution of the Current Situation. Refresh a few times to see a variety of quotes.
posted by msacheson on Oct 1, 2001 - 9 comments

Glassdog to close personal narrative. Well, at least the Life Serial, that is. Will there be a new section to round out Glassdog Services (tm)? We hope so.
posted by rich on May 2, 2001 - 33 comments

"Because in the end..." One of the most insightful, engaging, and well written sites (not to mention the one that got plenty of us blogging in the first place) stops updating, at least for the near future; the tear-jerker of a last entry touches on so many things- relationships, art, emotions, careers, etc - it perfectly encapsulates so much of what made the page great. We'll miss you, Jack Saturn.

That being said, I can't wait for the book.
posted by NickBarat on Jan 31, 2001 - 7 comments

Is LiveJournal taking aim at Blogger? I use both Blogger and LiveJournal myself, one for my weblog and one for more of a web journal I write things in occasionally. I think both web apps have different strengths and purposes, but there are certainly marked similarities, especially in light of the successful server fund raising drives both services have recently completed.
posted by Axodys on Jan 12, 2001 - 40 comments

LiveJournal's "Paid Accounts" model might be the route that Pyra wants to take with Blogger. I don't know much about LiveJournal's features as compared with Blogger, but they certainly have thought out their revenue model. Does anyone know anything about LiveJournal?
posted by jmcnally on Jan 8, 2001 - 9 comments

Has the BlogHop self rating thing gotten out of hand? Seems like every blog I visit these days has the color stripe (except mine of course).
posted by Mr. skullhead on Nov 11, 2000 - 8 comments

Where did CC go? Is it true the editorial cabal at the Aged have censored CC following postings on MeFi? It's Sunday night and she's not blogging ... Has Casey been exposed as a Rocky regular and management have dumped her? Did palegirl kidnap her? Bring back CC you bastards!
posted by beergirl on May 28, 2000 - 2 comments

Does anyone know what happened to GirlText? Elizabeth was supercool, but for the last week or two, there's been a "denied access" page. Bummer.
posted by delfuego on May 21, 2000 - 0 comments

File under "creativity in product naming". Expect future weblog management tools to bear names such as Blodder, Blobber, and Blopper.
posted by jjg on Feb 22, 2000 - 9 comments