New Types of Blogging

Most people think of the normal blog post as a few paragraphs describing one’s thoughts and feelings or perhaps simply what one did that day. However, new technology has allowed for other means of blogging, which are quickly becoming as popular as the standard text blog.

One of the most popular methods of blogging is audio podcasting, in which the words are spoken instead of written. The recording of the script is saved as a sound file and can be listened to on a computer or mp3 player, making it better for devices that do not have screens. It is popular among ipods, where one can simply insert two earphones, download a podcast off the itunes store, and listen to your favorite talk show host’s thoughts of the recent news. It is also a great help to those who are visually impaired, as it removes the burden of reading blogs and simply requires them to listen to a speaker narrate the words of the blog.

Expanding on the concept of podcasting is the phenomenon of vlogging, where a person talks to a video camera about their day or the thoughts on their mind. This has become very easy and popular due to the rise of youtube, a video-hosting and sharing site. This is often more effective than standard blogging because it allows the viewer to see the person who is speaking, giving a more direct connection between the blogger and the viewer. Body language, facial expressions, and even demonstrations can contribute to the viewer’s experience. For example, if a person is talking about his grandmother, he or she can quickly hold up a picture of the grandmother in front of the video camera, allowing viewers to see what the grandmother looks like. It is also easier for many people to simply watch and listen to a person rather than reading paragraphs of information.

Another common type of blogging is through photos, in which a picture is displayed every day and a small caption describes the picture. It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words, as one good picture can easily give the audience the mood and thoughts of the author. This technique, called "photoblogging," is often used by artistic or would-be photographers who like to capture their worlds in terms of pictures. It is also appealing to some people because it requires significantly less typing and reading; one look at the picture of the day tells all.

These various ways of blogging are only examples in an ever-expanding Internet. Many people have been known to use sketches, music, art, and various other media to express their feelings to audiences worldwide. The exponentially growing technology in the world today provides new ways to record the thoughts of bloggers, while the evolving web design of blogging sites on the Internet provide better implementation of this technology. Just like how many books have been replaced in the modern world with movies, many blogs are being replaced with other means such as audio podcasting, photoblogging, or vlogging.