Many people need a morning “fix.” For some, it’s coffee. For others, it’s “SportsCenter.”
For me, it’s Feministing.com.
I am 24 years old. I belong to a generation that is notorious for its lack of attention and desire to question authority. And much to our delight, society has accommodated us rather well, mainly by means of technology. We don’t tape our favorite television shows anymore; we TiVo them or buy them on iTunes so we can watch them while we take the bus to work or school. We multitask, combining barbecues and conference calls, and then we text message our friends about the things that happen in between.
Between working two jobs, walking my dog, and gallivanting with the boyfriend, I frankly don’t have time to plan my schedule around the 5 o’clock news. And neither does anyone I know.
I want to know what’s happening without sports scores or any mention of Bill O’Reilly, or mainstream media gossip that objectifies women and blatantly furthers the progression of the patriarchy. My desire to learn about the world needs to be met with something that is contemporary, immediate, and covers exactly what I want to learn about.
Enter Feministing.com, a blog (or Web log) that provides me with all of the news my liberal heart desires about current issues involving women and minorities across the world. What’s even better is that they deliver the news with flare and sass. They use headlines like “Feminists are the New Black” and “Step Away From the Pin-Up Girl,” and they organize the information so it is readily accessible and efficient – something necessary for my on-the-go, ADD-saturated generation.
With Feministing, I simply brew my coffee, click my mouse and I can read about the daily issues that affect me, all the while observing a platform of opportunity to read factual news and then participate in an online forum of response and opinion.
Perhaps these are some reasons for the rapidly increasing popularity of blogs. The members of my generation want what we want – and we want it now. We want the factual evidence that mainstream media gives us, but we also want to question and debate what is happening. Blogs combine hard facts with personal narrative, and we soak it up like sunshine.
We live in a society where we learn to question everything from our nutrition to our government, and we are allowed to make personal choices on what we choose to believe. Blogs build trust through personal narrative and opinion while also providing us with an opportunity to check the facts through Web links. They satisfy our limited attention span by providing what we want to read instantly.
Jessica Valenti, editor for Feministing, explained: “The great things about reading blogs is the immediacy (we’re super fast) and the personality of each blog. We do the work of searching around for the best stories pertaining to women, and write about them in a fun way. It’s like a one-stop-shop for feminist news. Plus, unlike other news sources, blogs allow for interaction between the readers and bloggers. It makes for an online community.”
There are blogs about just about everything: rock climbing, investing, owning a pet.
Many people see the growth of blogs as a violation of the standard rules of journalism and credibility. It’s true that we likely never know who’s “back there” on the Internet, what credentials bloggers have and who we can trust. I’ve come across blogs full of ranting and opinion with no solid factual evidence to back up viewpoints.
However, I have chosen to give most bloggers I come across the benefit of the doubt and trust what they write about because to me, their sources are credible and they write from a perspective that I can relate to.
Criticize all you want, but it’s a decision I’m happy with.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, Feministing just posted an article on how more college-educated women are finding themselves single. It’s news I just can’t miss.
Katie Stone (katiestone23@gmail.com) is a May graduate of CU-Boulder, works as a server in Cherry Creek and is a freelance video editor.
