Personal Choices

"We are driven by our enthusiasm for knowledge, by our affection for the possibilities of blogging........."


This is part of a quote from " The Committee to Protect Bloggers" mission statement and although I agree with this in spirit, my belief in the real opportunities that exist in the "possibilities" of blogging have been sorely tested lately.

I happen to believe that bloggers, much like newspapers, have a responsibility to maintain a certain level of journalistic integrity. I have tried to maintain a level of respect with my disagreements with commentors and with leadership because I happen to believe public discourse with other people dictates a level of mutual respect. I have been guilty of pushing that boundary a little and when I have, I've regretted it and I've apologized to those I know I've offended. I will apologize now to those who I might have unknowingly done the same.

But I think it all comes down to personal choices with regard to blogging because our activity is unregulated and operates in a "grey" area unlike mainstream journalism. Thankfully, since national blogs are now becoming sources for news as much as traditional news outlets have been, blogs are beginning to attain the respect they deserve and at the same time, self regulate their content and accountability to levels that are consistent with accepted journalistic standards. This self regulation takes time, dedication and committment and until there are laws that regulate our activity, our blogs are what we decide we want them to be.

So, in essence, our blogs represent who we are as people and neighbors within our community.

And because we are our own editors, what we write about and how we represent our posts are an indication of what is important to us as people, neighbors and constituents.

Personally, I care deeply about Rogers Park, about North of Howard and about my neighbors. That care is reflected in the painstaking and time consuming process that this novice writer has tried to develope to ensure that what and who I write about is as accurate as possible and not personal and malicious in nature. I happen to think that the facts are important and reputations should be handled with care.

I don't consider blogging a sport and what might be justified and passed off as acceptable in the mainstream media and blogs, to pry into and insinuate about a persons' personal life, is just as deplorable nationally as it is here in Rogers Park.

Heck, I secretly glance at the Enquirer as I wait at the checkout counter too, but that doesn't mean I'm going to support that rag or any other tattler type magazine. I know there is an audience for that type of bottom feeder "journalism" and I realize that writers need work and bloggers need content. But I have no respect for anyone who devotes their time and energy smearing people in public without a shred of evidence for a few deliberate and malicious chuckles on a slow news day.

But again, these are personal choices.

I just want to thank the commenters who censured that foolishness and who appear at least, to be keeping an open mind. That's all I would hope for.

Even though I have a "public" profile as a blogger in Rogers Park, I am not a paid public servant or candidate for public office nor would I ever be one. I am a private citizen and I have a right to privacy and I will defend that right. And just for the record, the word I used to communicate my concern was not "intimidated" as was of course wrongfully reported because I am not intimidated. I choose my words carefully and the word I used was "harassed".

And judging by the e mails and phone calls I've received, there are others in our community who are tired of this harasment and abuse too. Because that's what this type of blog behavior is, it's abuse, plain and simple. It's a waste and an abuse of what should be a priveledge. It adds nothing positive to the already difficult issues we face in our neighborhood and does not solve a thing.

There should be a higher barrier of entry for the priveledge of blogging and representing a neighborhood besides simply owning a computer and a skewed sense of morality.

gf