One of the points made in last week’s post “The Guardian Still Thinks Blogs Are Crap” was that people are beginning to turn to blogs before they turn to the mainstream media.
This story (spotted by SM) in the Asia Media on how Indians around the world turned to the blogs after last week’s horrific attacks in Mumbai, highlights this trend:
As Mumbai struggled to come to terms with the enormous tragedy that struck it on Tuesday, the online community pitched in to provide information on the victims and an outlet for their grief.
The Press Trust of India (PTI) said many overseas Indians turned to the blogs to get information when communication lines got jammed soon after the series of blasts on commuter trains.
“Most Indians living abroad had no way of getting through to their loved ones, no way of knowing if they were safe and sound. I think our blog helped because we called up relatives in Mumbai and got the message across to frantic kin abroad,” said blogger Amit Varma.
It’s a time watching newspapers combine their digital and offline press departments and it’s interesting to ponder whether these combined unit would be any better at providing the news and information that people want in times like these. Maybe mergers are not enough – maybe the press needs to completely reinvent the way it publishes to keep up with the demands of the people and the speed of the folksonomy.
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