Voting is Open Now… for NL Blogger’s Choice Awards!

If you are looking for a catalogue of local blogs there is only one place to go;  the Newfoundland and Labrador Blog Roll.

It’s the well-tended baby of Stephen Eli Harris,  a local blogger himself.

you’ll find the current blog list on the left hand side of the page.  Be warned;  it’s long.  There are lots of you out there in Newfoundland and labrador with something on your mind.  And the topics are diverse.  Everything from politics to food to babies.

While you are there, take time to check the NL Blogger’s Choice Awards and vote for the blogs you like in the different categories.  Remember:  it’s one vote per day. And you can vote every day until the end of September.

Sir Robert Bond Papers is nominated in the Political/Commentary Blogs category alongside The Fighting Newfoundlander and The Rural Lens.

towniebastard is up for the Mixed Bag category and gas and Oil is up for the Travel/Business prize.

SEH managed to pick out three blogs based on his criteria of design, longevity and frequency of posting.  It is an honour to be in the running but when you check the three competitors in this category, you will see, the choice will be tough.

A vote for these humble e-scribbles would be greatly appreciated.

And don’t forget, the national blog awards are coming up next month.

So vote, early, vote often and if you are so inclined, vote Sir Robert Bond Papers.

- srbp -

Gushue on blogs

Over at John Gushue’s Telegram column, you’ll find some wise advice and observations about blogs and blogging.

John’s been the force behind what may well be the province’s longest running and certainly the best blog: dot, dot,dot.  You’ll find John’s eclectic work in a link in the ‘Sir Robert Recommends’ pile on the left of by simply clicking here.  no one will be surprised to know that John is typically the most popular out-link from these parts.  People like to head from here to there and frankly, there really isn’t a finer place to go.

As John notes in the title of his post, blogging isn’t likely to be a source of income.  If you think blogging will make money or even bring in some business for you, that may depend on the market where you are.  Around these parts, blogging isn’t a money making proposition.

There are probably as many reasons for writing a blog as there are people writing.  Blogging is a personal thing, after all. John makes that point in several ways.

Take a look around the Internet and you can find a variety of blogs covering everything from hobbies to technology to politics.  If people are doing it or interested in it, then there is a blog out there somewhere about it.

That’s really the amazing thing about the Internet.  People can express themselves freely using whatever talents they have.  Some people may chose to be complete twits.  That’s fine: for every one of them, there is at least one like the people over there who Sir Robert Recommends.

If you’ve been thinking about blogging, just jump in.  The world can use more people like you online.

Just make sure you read John Gushue’s top-notch advice first.

-srbp-

Big Brother is already watching

And he’s pretty curious to find out who Winston Smith is.

Who cares?

He – or she – writes interesting stuff.

-srbp-

Vote early! Vote Bond!

The first round of voting for the Canadian Blog Awards is underway!

Click on the big picture of Sir Robert and you'll go straight to the main page. Bond Papers is nominated under Best Blog and Best Political Blog.

You can also click this massive banner right here and wind up in the same spot.

Remember, it's only one vote per category so vote early, vote wisely and harass your friends to vote as well.

The are some great blogs to vote for, including Craig Welsh's Townie Bastard.  Craig has blazed trails in the Great North and his blog is a fine example of his considerable writing talent.

Wally Maclean's labradore is also worth your vote consideration.  He's had a huge impact locally.  Sometimes it seems his blog doesn't get the attention it deserves directly but you'd be surprised at the number of places his stuff shows up.  That's because it is solidly researched.  If you want a fact or want something straightened, check labradore.

Take your time, though and go through the categories.  You can also find links to each blog on the bottom of each category page if you need some time to make up your mind.

Just get out there and vote and to all those who vote Bond, thanks so much for your support.

-srbp-

A new blog

Petition to strengthen democracy in Newfoundland and Labrador, by someone named Ursula Dowler.

-srbp-

Unfashionably frank, closer to home

Craig Westcott, publisher editor and just about everything at the Business Post is now blogging.

The Public Ledger

-srbp-

Swedish FM in blog controversy

Prosecutors are investigating to determine if comments made by a reader of Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt's blog constitute a breach of a Swedish law that holds blog authors responsible for the contents of their site.

One of the comments being investigated called Palestinians 'spawn of Satan,' while another called them 'a bloody pack of murderers.' In one comment, a reader said: 'give us 24 hours and all Palestinians will be gone, and we'll have 100 percent of Israel.'

Chancellor of Justice Göran Lambertz, one of Sweden's most senior legal officials, is usually charged with prosecuting cases involving people's constitutional right to freedom of speech.

He ruled, however, that Bildt's blog was not covered by those sections of the constitution regarding free speech, meaning that police and prosecutors were able to take up the case.

-srbp-

(h/t to Media Culpa, which includes links to Bildt's blog and other sources - in Swedish.)

Update: here's the link to Media Culpa with a new URL)

In defence of blogs

Who'd-a-thunk it?

The bastion of the mainstream print media in Newfoundland and Labrador leaps to the defence of blogs, specifically the political blogs in the province.

Well, parts of it were more like damning with faint praise.

And those were the parts that tried to discuss blogs generally while really talking about specific types of blogs and not really getting it right anyways.

Ah well, let's save the discussion of blogs and the conventional news media for another post.

For now, let's just note that this editorial - as thankful as bloggers are to see it - was really about an ongoing pissing match between the Telegram and an apparently very frustrated former Telegram reporter who now works cranking out another newspaper from offices on Harbour Drive.

Still, it's fun to read the two offering views on new media. It almost makes for a Sally Field at the Oscars kinda moment.

Well, not exactly.

But you get the idea.

-srbp-