Facebook Killed the Blog, Part II

So, I found myself wondering the other day about Facebook's impact on blogs, again.

When blogs first hit the scene, some 13-15 years ago, they were really, the only gig in town. If you wanted to interact socially, it was blogs or forums or nothing.

Now, of course, Facebook (and Twitter, to a far lesser degree) is the 800 pound gorilla in the room. Way too many people view Facebook and social media as completely synonymous (which, they're not).

So, here's an example.

My blog, obviously, is public-facing. Anyone can find it, read it, comment on it. I don't restrict the viewing of the blog to anyone.

But, when I promote the blog, I do it on Facebook, a lot of times. When my friends want to comment, they do that in response to my link post on Facebook; *NOT* on the blog. The net result is that 90 percent of the comments to my blog don't actually make it TO my blog; they're restricted to my circle of friends on Facebook. And, any other viewers might not see that a good deal of my posts actually generate a number of comments.

Now, ideally, blogs are meant to be viral -- viewers should read them, comment and share -- and by doing that, the readership grows. But, Facebook continues to make that less conducive. Now, in some cases, it's understandable that people don't want to post publicly (maybe they want to send something to me directly; and they don't want everyone to see what they've written). And, that's the bigger risk of social media -- the fact that the web makes things archivable and findable and permanent.

I thought about this a lot last year, while I was out of work -- ensuring that what I posted in various places made sense given the venue (in other words, public forums demanded one level of self-imposed privacy; Facebook demanded another; email conversations could be less concerning). I went back over my internet history and ensured that anything I had posted in a public setting was appropriate and suitable.

I basically subscribe to this version of internet privacy (something we all should follow), and I see the value in being more careful (even now that I'm no longer looking for a job). But, I think you need to know the setting you're in -- this doesn't mean you have to completely change your online personality, necessarily; it just means that, perhaps, that highly off-color joke is better served through email than on Facebook.

One of my favorite communications professionals, Shel Holtz, has a great saying -- "New media do not kill old media" -- and that's certainly true. All of these media work together -- email has a place; blogs have a place; and Facebook has a place. Unfortunately, I wonder if blogs have overstayed their welcome -- not really from a functional standpoint (I still think they're outstanding forms of communication); but from an audience perspective.