Baghdad Blogging

When it comes to world changing events like 9/11 or more recently, the disaster in Japan, most of us will do one of two things to learn about the latest news: 1) we will reach for our television remotes and instantly change the channel to something like CNN or MSNBC. We instantly want to learn or hear more about what is happening. We see the reporters already in locations like Japan or in New Orleans, during Katrina, and we trust the reports because they are experiencing the effects of the disaster and see the reactions of people, army or volunteers. 2) we may not be able to get to a tv but with the world being connected with the internet, everything is just a few clicks away. Websites like ABCNews and NYTimes are just two of the favorites millions of people will visit as an alternative to watching tv. With huge corporations like these, people who write blogs and attempt to share their experiences, views and news with the world are deemed un-creditable and unreliable. Baghdad Burning was a blog by an Iraqi woman and she talked about life in Iraq during the war. Through her blog you can witness the terrifying events of everyday life for her and other women in Iraq. While blogs may be biased or lean in one direction more than the other, it's still, in my opinion, a source to gather different view points. Reporters from CNN and ABCNews may tell us how life is being lived in foreign countries like Japan after the earthquake but they get to go home and get away from it all. Blogs have the opportunity to give updates days after the reporters go home.