Study Finds Vast Differences Between Blogs on the Left and Right, Not just in Content

by: Jennifer Daler

Wed Apr 28, 2010 at 12:00:41 PM EDT

The dominant academic literature posits an ideologically symmetrical blogosphere--an arena where liberals and conservatives practice similar writing, linking and mobilization tactics. The political and media establishment, meanwhile, tend to treat blogs as an isolated medium for political polarization. In this narrative, blogs are a digital refuge for the radical pacifists and tea party insurgents stuck at the margins of their own parties.

The study's findings challenge these hypotheses.

A pre-publication copy of the study was obtained by Melber. It was conducted by researchers Yochai Benkler, Aaron Shaw and Victoria Stodden. They looked at the content and technology of 150 political blogs over two weeks during the 2008 presidential election.

One of the most striking findings is structural: liberal blogs provide audience participation options at triple the rate of conservative sites. That means visitors to progressive sites are more empowered to contribute entire posts to the "front page," and more likely to have their contributions or comments highlighted before potentially hundreds of thousands of readers

Aaron Shaw, who co-wrote the study as part of his Phd in Sociology at Berkely, told Melber that the public sphere in America will change drastically over the next two decades if this format catches on. This, of course, is right out of Markos Moulitas Zuniga's book Taking on the System, a book I recommend, if only for its description of Carol Shea-Porter's successful 2006 Congressional campaign.

But

"The right adopts practices that more strictly separate secondary from primary content," the study reports. In other words, many conservatives still run their sites like newspapers. The writers are credentialed on stage, while "letters to the editor" are clearly marked and parked in the back. Overall, 42 percent of the conservative blogs in the survey were run by one author, while 20 percent of the liberal sites were solo shows.

The article goes on to reiterate that the political ramifications of each side's use of the blogosphere are huge. We already knew this, but it is interesting to see it borne out via the study.

The article and the study it's based on are well worth the read. Political types, from policy wonks to organizers, ignore the power of the blogoshere at their own peril.