Google is a great company, but ranking the official Google blog among Time Magazine's 25 Best Blogs of 2009 is kooky.
Imagine my surprise when I saw this list, recognized a few names as worthy selections, raised my eyebrows at the inclusion of others, and scratched my head wondering who picked the rest.
Who decided Discover Magazine's Bad Astronomy made the cut?
The New York Times' Paul Krugman, dancing under the moniker, Confessions of a Liberal, is hardly representative of the blogosphere.
What about Confessions of a Pioneer Woman? I never heard of that one, and it's the best?
Time Magazine has it wrong.
There is no best. If you don't believe me, ask this giraffe to pose her best side.
I'd like to go further with this line of thought. Whether or not you agree with me that the list's modifier of "best" is faulty, let's verify we're on the same page when defining a blog.
What is a blog?
Six months ago, I credited Daily Blog Tips writer Daniel Scocco with five features that define blogs:
- content is published in a chronological fashion
- content is updated regularly
- readers have the possibility to leave comments
- other blog authors can interact via trackbacks and pingbacks
- content is syndicated via RSS feeds
Blogging, I defined at the time:
...is not about "me" pushing information to "you" anymore. It's not about "my" and "your" or "their."
It's about poly-directional conversation, collaboration, and communication using "we" and "our" as the new mediums of information sharing and knowledge retention.
How does the official Google blog fit into that definition?
Maybe my definition is wrong.
Two more things
For the geeks: Do you read Boing Boing? Would you agree with me that it's overrated?
For that matter, how about TechCrunch?
See, the magazine placed TechCrunch in its mini list of five overrated blogs, but included Boing Boing in the larger list of best blogs. I admit I don't follow the music and lifestyle side of the blogosphere, so if that's where Boing Boing shines, I'll retract my opinion. But I agree with Time's perception of TechCrunch, for whatever the magazine's worth holds.
If you want to improve: I'd like to echo what the magazine says about Guamian blogger Leo Babauta of Zen Habits:
This is the rare blog that can actually improve your everyday life.
I don't read Leo's blog frequently, but when I do, I am impressed.
Photo credit: kjunstorm
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