As far as the content of a blog, or my blog in particular, I don’t see the harm in blogging about the workplace. I think an important step in moving forward, progressing, is sharing our growing pains, whether they occur at school or at work. As long as we conform to the norms of journalism–good reporting, unbiased writing, etc.–our blogs should be golden.

With personal Web sites and online portfolios, newspapers won’t be able to drag their feet forever. Eventually they’ll learn that my “online portfolio” will cease to be my “online” portfolio. It’ll just be my portfolio.

(1) Consider personal blogging as a free training class for your reporters.

(2) Accept that controversies are going to arise in blogging. Do not retrench out of fear. (In other words, have courage.) Do not punish journalists for making an honest error in judgment. (Don’t execute someone because he got wounded in battle!)

(3) The best way to handle controversies or mistakes is to be as open and approachable with readers as possible.

Why? I guess I compartmentalize and exclude this stuff about my real life for several reasons. I have children, and I don’t want their teachers blogging about my kids. I have co-workers and a boss, and I don’t want them blogging about me, either.

I guess it comes down to the golden rule. I have enough stuff to blog about that I don’t need to pull in work-related stuff for me. I think it’s almost suicide if you do; at some point someone’s going to do the right google search and then you’re in trouble. Others would say that blogging under a pseudonym gives you no credibility; I say look at Publius, his efforts helped get the Constitution ratified.

Blogging helps me understand what’s happening online far more than just passively reading or making a few comments. As a site moderator, I need to bridge quarrels that sometimes erupt in our ideologically diverse readership, deal with offensive comments, and explain how I deal with my own ideological beliefs in the context of reporting. I also need to learn about technical issues, such as differences between commenting platforms and what to do when the blog goes down.

Those skills are immediately transferable to any blogging I may do for my employer, or for comments made to my stories on our Web site. I’ve also gotten some good story advice from the readership on the blog, which I co-moderate with three others.

I advise media outlets to consider personal blogging a sort of free training class for their employees. The outlets should be willing to accept that controversies are going to arise in blogging, and not to draw back in fear of them. (or to punish their employees for an honest error in judgment). The best way to handle controversies or mistakes is to be as open and approachable with readers as possible. Blogs offer a very nimble way to do that.

All of this ties into a sense of ownership for what we do and how it’s perceived by our readers. As an aside, I sent Howard’s post about how newspapers need to carefully cultivate their comments section to my editor, and he forwarded it to everyone. Let us tend to our reader garden.

With the lines of private life and work life blurring more than ever, and technology making many things available outside of one’s employer infrastructure, there is no clear dividing line anymore.

Many professionals could greatly contribute to the blogsphere if they would be allowed or would feel comfortable speaking about their work related experience. But they don’t. Thus much of the blogosphere is limited to freelancers and corporate bloggers where it comes to free speech, or private bloggers carefully having to avoid anything that could be related to their work.

It’s the fear of those in control of having to confront the imperfections of their business and leadership skills. The greatest challenge is to succeed in business in the presence of perfect information. Today’s information society does make that a possible reality, but it puts great fear into many people who don’t like that scenario and thus they try to prevent it. Hopefully it’s a losing battle in the long term.

> It at least shows that they have other skills — the kind of skills newspapers need.

I would not have the skills I possess currently without my extracurricular Web design/development.

Newspapers are loath, or simply can’t afford, to train there employees for the Web. The least they could do is allow them to pursue training on their own time.

Of course, this doesn’t excuse the employee from undermining the business — folks need to be smart about it.