Meet the New Media, Same as the Old Media

It’s become obligatory for internet philosophers to crow about how blogs have democratized the press and allowed average joes to beat big media, but it’s just not true anymore, writes Benajamin Carlson of the Atlantic. “The free-wheeling fraternal spirit of blogging has become increasingly subject to market disciplines.” Or, as Washington Post blogger Ezra Klein put it, “The place has professionalized.”

Of the top 50 blogs, 21 are owned by big corporate entities, like CNN and the New York Times. Even independent blogs are now big, entrenched names, swiftly expanding into companies. New bloggers no longer break in from the Wordpress hinterlands, but from established brands. “Far from leveling the playing field, blogs have simply built up challenging new pathways to success,” Carlson argues, “ones that mirror old-media ways.” (More new media stories.)