I’m very happy to announce that we released the 2008 State of the Blogosphere report this morning. If you missed my talk at Blog World Expo on Saturday, you can see the study here.
We’ve been publishing this report since Dave Sifry wrote the first one in 2004.
This year, we wanted to go beyond the numbers and deliver deeper insights into bloggers and the state of blogging today. In addition to analyzing the data from the Technorati Index, for the first time, we’ve reached out to the blogosphere to understand the role of blogging in their lives; tools, time and resources used for their blogs; and how blogging has impacted them personally, professionally and financially.
So what did Technorati measure this year and why?
There’s a wide range of estimates of the number of global blogs as well as blog readership (including ours), but all the numbers agree that blogs are a global phenomenon that has hit the mainstream. Further, as the blogosphere grows in size and influence, the lines between what is a blog and what is a mainstream site become less clear. Larger blogs are taking on more characteristics of mainstream sites and mainstream sites are incorporating styles and formats from the blogosphere.
We feel that the real story now lies with the Active Blogosphere. The trends, stories and behaviors here influence not only the rest of the blogosphere but mainstream media as well.
Technorati defines the Active Blogosphere as: The ecosystem of interconnected communities of bloggers and readers at the convergence of journalism and conversation.
So how do we determine who’s active? Some blogs are more integral to the blogosphere than others: How frequently does this blog post? Is this blog linking to others and are others linking to it? Does this blogger post original, opinion, or reactive content? These are all factors that factor into a blog’s authority and determine its place in the active blogosphere.
In short, these are the bloggers that are making the space tick.
The study goes live over the course of this week:
Live today: Overview, and Who are the Bloggers?
Tuesday: The What and Why of Blogging
Wednesday: The How of Blogging
Thursday: Blogging for profit
Friday: Brands in the blogosphere
