The iron cage of blogging?

More and more people seem to be noticing the phenomenon of blogs turning into organizations. Scott Parrott (MA student headed to UNC) and I presented a study in the fall at the AEJMC Convention that revealed evidence of blogs hiring staff, developing formal rules, chasing ad revenue — just the sort of stuff that mainstream news organizations do. While many claim we live in a networked, post-bureaucratic society, the bureaucratic form ain’t dead yet. Just think how many bureaucratic institutions affected your life today… It seems blogs are showing signs of organizational structure. It’s just nascent for some, but quite developed for others (HuffPo).

On top of the evidence for org structure, we found pretty strong correlations between the degree to which blogs acted like orgs and the degree of formality and caution in their blog postings. Blogs with org structure were more likely to offer balance in their posting, do first-hand reporting and less likely to use snarky slang and four-letter words. Grammar improves too.

A series of indepth interviews I conducted a couple of years ago suggested this study to me. The bloggers we talked with emphasized the intense pressure to update (others have noted this too), and the drive for revenue, and all indicated development of work routines. Revenue allows hiring of staff, and increased reporting and more frequent updates, which tends to bring traffic. The more eyes on the blog, the more bloggers feel the need to strive for legitimacy — that elusive fairy dust that sociologist Max Weber valued so highly. Authority needs more than just capital — an org built on capital alone will erode without legitimacy — a general shared, taken-for-granted understanding and social and cultural acceptance of the org’s forms and practices.

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