Blog addict

In my last post, I referred to a feature on my blog published in the online version of one of the most widely-read Philippine broadsheets, the Philippine Daily Inquirer. The regular YOU column on “blog addicts” presents the various views of bloggers, who publish a plethora of blog types, ranging from personal journals to literary notebooks to weblogs of technical nature.

Browsing through tech news (again, via RSS, quite a lovely tool), I came across this nifty article on SiliconValley.com depicting the state of some bloggers that are considered to be addicts in the purest denotation of the word.

… many others who publish the online journals known as Weblogs, or “blogs’’ for short, have discovered the addictive nature of blogging. What starts out as a hobby for some can end up permeating their lives and minds. Some of the diarists post repeatedly throughout the day, juggle several blogs and feel anxious if they don’t write. Most dedicated bloggers say the endeavor has enriched their lives, but some worry about finding balance and keeping their obsession in check.

What are the psychological and sociological implications of blogging, I ask myself? Perhaps, I would agree that:

For most people, blogs are a healthy means of self-expression and validation … Most digital diarists find gratification in connecting with readers. Some feel the need to apologize to readers if they have not updated enough
…
But blogging can become so all-consuming that it overshadows reality. [Bloggers] spend enormous amounts of time blogging rather than living.

So what are the signs of blogging addiction? The SiliconValley.com article also encapsulates so well the characteristics of a blog addict, to wit:

1. 
   

   Do you think about everything in terms of whether it will make a good blog entry?

   
   



2. 
   

   Do you keep your computer in standby mode beside your bed and wake up at 2 a.m. to blog?



3. 
   

   Do you skip lunch and blog instead?’‘

I experience #1 occasionally. I could not afford #2, given exorbitant electricity prices in this country. I do find myself doing #3 more often (which is related to why I could not afford #2, or anything at all for that matter, with how the commodity prices are rising these days—and that’s still even without the expanded Value-Added Tax being proposed by the Philippine Government; this is another story, though).

Fired for blogging

So what else would bloggers have to worry about aside from addiction? I would reckon that getting fired for blogging would be another concern. In well-publicized cases, big-time ICT firms such as Microsoft and Google have been known to fire employees allegedly because of their blogging activities (links: Google and Microsoft), or worse, fired because of other peoples’ blogging activities (links here and here). These precedents raise the question of determining whether the line between what is prudent and not in expression of personal opinions and disclosure of information is crossed, or if there is such a line at all with this new online phenomenon, which is by nature a free-form exchange of views, whether personal or professional in nature.

In my old blog hosted at blogspot, I had been asked by a reader whether the Philippine Government (my former employer, or at least up to the time my resignation has finally been formally accepted—which was supposed to be last week!) the following:

Does the Philippine Government allow its employees to discuss issues pertinent to their line of work in public forums such as blogs? Is there no conflict of interest implications in such an action? Is the government not concerned with disclosure of confidential or restricted information?

Well, I haven’t been fired, but I guess my bosses were already too well aware of my plans to resign (an intention I made known many, many months back) so they found no need for another means to get rid of me. And I guess they’re just not avid blog readers, which is unfortunate since IMHO, government officials stand to learn quite a handful of insightful opinions and feedback from their constituents through weblogs. So far, I only know of one government official who has started not only to read blogs, but to publish one himself.

I do remember having been reminded by my boss to exercise care in handling the knowledge and information I had gained from my stay in NEDA. He was of the impression that certain parties would pay through the nose to get their hands on such information.

Incarcerated for blogging

Perhaps most worrisome for bloggers is the danger of being branded an enemy of the state, as is the case in some restrictive regimes that try to curtail the freedom of expression, to the extent of filtering internet content. I surely wouldn’t want to end up behind bars for being an online publisher. I do salute the brave individuals who stand up to the odds. And I do thank all those who contribute greatly to the on- and off-line world by blogging. The world would surely be different without blogs.

Back to blog addiction. My clock reads 4:00 a.m., and I think I may have skipped lunch!

Angelo

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