Hilary and others
I appreciate what you say of course. Not being patronising, the intention is
very relevant in current CG debates [and others].
But it`s surely a myth that the blogging practice is an interface on
real-people-who-deserve-our-attention etc.
It is surely acknowedged to be far too faulty- self selective,
non-contextualised, etc, etc, etc,
I`d go for more gritty engagement.
Best
David
>>> Hilary Geoghegan <[log in to unmask]> 06/11/08 11:57 PM >>>
My reasons for creating a blog were diverse. Ultimately it came down to
the practicality of setting-up, organising and maintaining/updating the
information I wanted online. Wordpress.com and other online companies offer
a virtual space readily accessible to those of us creating a site online
(see also http://nigelthrift.org/ and those cited in the previous post).
However, as someone that uses the Internet regularly to access journals and
other online resources, as well as to visit other blogs/sites (see for
example http://techstyle.typepad.com/ and http://fretmarks.blogspot.com/),
the benefits are clearly there. I am sure I am not alone in including on a
research proposal to a funding council that “I will also create an
associated project website”; this is MY associated website that is
available to all to publicise my research not only to geographers but also
more importantly to my research participants. Okay, perhaps BLOG is the
wrong word to use in this instance, it is more like a regularly updated web
resource – a virtual space that I hope will encourage fellow geographers to
check in now and again to see what is new.
David Crouch’s earlier comment – ‘why on earth a blog’– raises further
useful questions in relation to the public geographies often discussed here
on the crit-geog-forum (also a regularly updated web resource).
Many ‘Critters’ are keen to make their work relevant to audiences beyond
academic geography – through collaboration with private and public
organisations, as well as through feeding their research back into policy
and the communities they research. The Internet offers perhaps the most
readily accessible tool for just such a purpose. I freely acknowledge that
the shelf-life of such ventures is varied and can be short-lived, but
surely such sites are a step in the right direction.
I therefore encourage Critters to visit my site
(http://hilarygeoghegan.wordpress.com), and others like it, in order to
foster an online culture of communicating, disseminating and feeding back –
helping geography to become MORE public and not just a good intention on a
research proposal.
Yours enthusiastically,
Hilary
|