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Bloggers, MISrepresent!

It is such a sad experience to have a blogger misrepresent the Philippine blogosphere for his or her own merit. Recently, a huge conference was held and some industry folk mentioned a particular blogger who gave such a compelling presentation about the Philippine blogosphere. It was so compelling because it was the first BIG time that the local industry’s eyes were opened to the spectacle that is the Philippine blogosphere.

The phenomenon known as the Philippine Blogosphere is a treasure that is owned by all the bloggers. It is true that there are those who stand out with their ways either because of kapal ng mukha, good content, remarkable personalities and other such things. Any blogger in the community may have a handful to say, if asked by companies, on what the local blogosphere is like.

But it is very different case when one uses the blogosphere for personal merit.

I will say now that I get invited by PR agencies and other organizations to talk about new media in the Philippines, which refers to the Philippine blogosphere. I have three rules which I follow prudently when speaking to the THIRD PARTY, which is the term I give companies, agencies and basically anyone who is not part or privy to the Philippine blogosphere:

  1. I give presentations to the third party as if there were actual bloggers in the audience, because in effect I am representing bloggers of all demographics. Just because there are no local bloggers around, it does not mean that I can use that moment, in front of several agencies, to promote my site and ask them for advertising opportunities and boast about how cool it is to be in this blogging industry.
  2. I never use my blog as an example. The only time I mention A Bugged Life is after I present, written underneath my name. I tell them what the blog contains, and that’s that. But more than that, I talk about niches, and blogs, and the people behind them and I always tell them how rich the local blog culture is with people. If you remember the types of presentations I gave during the first blog party in 2006 and at iBlog, these are the flavors and tone of how I present. Heck, I don’t even talk about Blog and Soul publicly. I only mention that project in one on one conversations with agencies if I have an upcoming pro-blogger event that needs sponsorship.
  3. I encourage them to blog. I encourage them to be part of the community. I entice them with a vibrant community and also entice them with the supplementary income you can make in the long run. You cannot encapsulate the human drama of the Philippine Blogosphere in one talk. You cannot talk about the Philippine Blogosphere by talking about your personal projects and how bloggers respond to it.

I had some qualms about posting this as I know I may get a lot of flack. But apathy will get us nowhere. I do believe that the blogger / speaker may be just a little misguided and I hope it doesn’t happen again. I don’t bear a personal or even professional grudge against this person but in the long run, other bloggers may do. If bloggers are invited to speak in front of a crowd of industry experts (yay!!!), bear in mind that you bring forward with you the hundreds of personalities of the local blogosphere.

Make sure you do not misrepresent us.

By Jayvee Fernandez

Jayvee Fernandez is a tech enthusiast and sitting Techbology Editor for The Philippine STAR.

He is also an EAN certified SCUBA Diver and underwater photographer based in Metro Manila, Philippines. His photos and videos have appeared in various international and local publications including Random House Germany, Discovery Channel Canada, and CNN.

42 replies on “Bloggers, MISrepresent!”

Right on Jayvee. It’s good you brought this up because it is unfair to the Philippines’ blogoshere. I was also at a loss when I heard of this. Maybe it’s high time we organize an informal group where various niches are represented.

Thanks for bringing this up, Jayvee. It’s so sad to hear this. The Philippine blogosphere is so vast, that it cannot simply be misRepresented by one person.

Let the voice of the rest of the Philippine blogosphere be heard, let everyone be represented fairly and squarely.

I missing a lot in the local blogosphere – which can be good or bad. I have to get updated. Misrepresentation at any level is bad and is not limited to blogging alone. I have seen this thing much too often and one really needs to point it. It will not stop unless it is brought attention to. I would agree with Noemi’s suggestion by the way.

Here come the mob crowd of the “philippine blogosphere”. Watch out!

The Philippine blogsphere has become a barkada of sorts where if you’re not part of the IN group, you get hammered for anything and everything under the sun that they can attack you with.

So what if he spoke about his blog? So long as he made no generalizations. You guys sound you’re sour graping because you ‘ignored’ and not given this assignment to speak. Stop thinking of yourselves as the pioneers and the prime movers of this world you have created amongs your minions.

What’s next? A union? A college? A Society? A Fellowship?

You guys don’t realize the more you organize – the more you peel away from the fabric of what makes a blog a blog.

Oh, i have my suspicions na. Remember, Jayvs what we talked about re blogging/bloggers at the grassroots level? re how: the old blogging “order” or “hierarchy” wont hold as the local blogosphere grows in size and how individuals will attempt to be an authority in their own circles.

It would help tremendously if you can cite the specific misrepresentations made.

As a personal note, it’s not like this is something unique. Bloggers misrepresent their own popularity and influence all the time for one reason or another — so they can get featured in print media, get invites from PR entities, get invited as speakers, etcetera, etcetera.

Sheesh… times like these make me feel I’m so far away from the action. Wonder what happened…

And yeah, the Philippine blogosphere, no one must forget, also includes those of us who blog from the Visayas and Mindanao. 😉

blogging aint no more fun if you are stressed so much and not enjoying anymore the freedom. If you are boxed and confined because of being a minority or not an A-List blogger or not part of the IN group of sort… too sad. very sad.

(its not you, abe :P)

i dont want to talk about who that person is for obvious reasons. its not fair to start accusing people when we ourselves have had small faults such as these too.

connie is right. to some extent we are all guilty, right?

I agree with Datu! Each Blogger has a voice// freedom of speech ika nga but I also agree one of Noemi’s post about responsible blogging. Remember what happened to the Nursing Board Passers? not all of them cheated but because they took the exam with the same batch… all of them are tagged..

Everyone has the right to speak about blogging for as long as he / she is responsible and sensible enough..

I dont care if theres a pseudo elite group in the Philippine Blogosphere. Politics is everywhere, it even exist in Vatican. For as long as they dont act like a mafia.. thats not a problem with me.

As a blogger, it really doesnt matter if you belong to a group or not. Influencing fellow bloggers by being a good example i think is a good practice. Be responsible / Brave and fair afterall you dont only represent the Philippine Blogosphere….. But your own.

One thing I like about blogging is the ability to speak your mind. In a way its a bit unfair not to name said person. It gives him or her no way to defend or clarify what was said or done especially if it was brought out in the open.

Also its but natural to develop friends in blogging and nothing wrong with that. As long as it does not impair your stand and in the end you have to make decisions that might potentially damage such friendships.

Is this ganging up on someone? We don’t even know who it is. Or is it the idea of the act itself or the extent?

In the end its the exchange of ideas that is important.

no i think ganging up on someone would mean naming names and making accusations. the friends will talk to this person as true friends best point out things like this in the best way too.

@janet – the sad thing is that these were reports from people who attended this event as well. i felt iffy to be honest, writing about something i didnt go to, but a trend was observed.

i’d rather take the bullet and write about this subtly, than have other people compose something more violent. thats the truth.

@blogie – yes im surprised too that i wrote this. 😛

In anything it seems wise to heed the old Roman Phrase:

Memento mori. or

“Respice post te! Hominem te esse memento!”

(Look behind you! Remember that you are but a man!)

🙂

At Datu’s comment: woah. That was a bit too much to take with one go.

And oh, yes, I hate being misrepresented as well – especially with sweeping generalizations. Haha

Seriously, all this misrepresentation brouhaha is what makes me stay away from blogger events.

I mean, sure, I’m a nobody in the Philippine blogosphere. Pero kung hanggang dyan may pulitika…

Sabi na nga ba eh, there’s a sort of “mafia” in the Philippine blogosphere. I remember this person who asked a question during the last iBlog event. He asked kung meron daw bang ‘mafia’. Then no one was able to answer his question I think.

What’s next, a blogger frat? Joke!

No, I don’t think there’s any real politicking in the blogosphere — just egos and personalities clashing. Don’t get turned off by it because, in any community, there will always be such type of dynamics. You just have to tune it out.

Hmmm…intriguing. But I really think that nobody really can represent the Philippine blogosphere or the blogosphere for that matter.

Once a blogger stands up in public, for a speech or lecture, he or she represents only himself and of course would talk mainly about from his own experiences for others to be inspired and learn tricks of the trade from.

of course he would use his own blog as an example, alangan namang blog ng iba! i don’t agree with your #2 on that list.

but that’s just me.

@glorian- that is true if you were told to talk about “Personal Blog” . Naturally you talk of your blog. Now what if you are told to talk of Travel Blogs and the Impact in Tourism. If I were the speaker, I will also talk of other travel blogs. talking of my travel blog is self-serving .

That’s right, nobody can represent the Filipino blogosphere with any degree of confidence. This is due to the very nature of blogging — it is a very personal activity.

Now, regarding talking about one’s own blogs in a public forum…. Really, must we split hairs here?

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