Evaluating blogs: analysis and assessment methods

¶ … Blog (3 SLP)

The blog I have chosen to evaluate is TMZ. It has been in existence for several years, and primarily concerns itself with covering celebrity news and gossip. As such, there are a number of followers of this particular blog. Moreover, there are several publications -- both web based and in print -- that publish news reported via TMZ. Because of its influence on popular culture, TMZ is an important blog to evaluate. The principle categories for evaluating this particular blog include its design, its writing, and its partisanship. These categories are essential for evaluating sources of news of information that is purported to be newsworthy, because they reveal how credible a source is.

TMZ's design is fairly basic, yet it is extremely effective. Each item that is blogged about is usually accompanied by either a photograph or, more likely, a video of the events chronicled within the text. Such a format is fairly attractive to viewers. Not only can they read a synopsis of what the blog details, but they can also watch the events as the unfolded. Many times, items blogged about and depicted in videos have taken place relatively recently, enabling viewers to watch what happened just a short while ago. The effect is that the viewer can feel closer to the event or to the celebrity depicted in it. As such, the credibility for TMZ increases because of its accessibility which is largely related to its design and the promptness of the blogs. The simplicity of the color scheme of the design of the blog also is useful for its purpose. The text is pasted against a plain white background, and stands out in bold black. More importantly, however, the moniker of the blog is highlighted at the top in bright red so that the viewer who happened to link to this site will know the name of the blog. Even better (for the purposes of those who run this blog) is the fact that along the side and the top of the articles shown are pictures of celebrities and links to other stories -- most of which are similar to that depicted in the present article (No author, 2013). Therefore, the viewer can remain engaged on the web site and find out about other news that may interest him or her as well. The design of this blog is fairly enticing.

The writing on TMZ's blogs is pedestrian. Actually, one of my most prominent concerns with this blog is the fact that the text is so terse. Articles usually deliver the facts, and provide a sentence or two of future ramifications. However, there is very little in-depth detail. Those who are truly interested in a subject or celebrity event will have to go to other sources to truly satisfy their curiosity. One of the reasons why the writing is so brief is because of the journalist/news aspect of this particular blog. It prides itself on 'breaking' news -- reporting the facts of what happened first. However, it could be easily improved by providing more analysis of the events, why they took place, and what they might mean in the future for parties involved. Doing so could keep the viewer engaged on a particular article for longer, which would naturally translate to more prolonged engagement on other articles/topics as well. Yet, to its credit, the writing on TMZ is well punctuated, grammatically correct, and refreshingly devoid of overt tips to remain hip by incorporating copious amounts of slang. Grammatical and syntax errors are frequently found when reading anything on the web, and in the category TMZ has done a very good job. By expanding its articles and continuing to present quality copy, it could be a better news source.