I fell in love with Martha Stewart, the businesswoman, the moment I met her. I love her even more today after I heard a recent TV interview where she gave her opinion about bloggers.
Not everyone has the nerve to publicly say what’s on their mind. Martha has never been shy. She doesn’t give much merit to bloggers. A blogger is someone like me who shares thoughts about life, current events, hobbies, professions, art, movies, food, fashion, tech, and an endless number of topics. Sometimes CEO’s have blog posts where they update the world about the state of their companies.
Most bloggers do not have any journalism background yet they are quick to offer opinions, reviews, guidance on product and services. Year after year, many bloggers have gained notoriety and business respect. That really bothers Martha. She feels that most of them don’t have skills or training. They just blah, blah all the time without the benefit of a high authority guiding them.
I deal with the top 50 to 100 bloggers in the music, tech, art, politics, beauty, and fashion businesses. Many of them are self-appointed authorities that somehow managed to get a following. They police themselves.
It’s a whole new world out there. Some bloggers are now considered industry celebrities. The Internet has provided a world stage where anyone can have 15 minutes of fame
DigiDame 
“Most bloggers do not have any journalism background yet they are quick to offer opinions, reviews, guidance on product and services.” Interesting point of view, but I’m wondering why one needs a journalism background to have an opinion. An opinion is just an opinion and even a six year old can have one. A degree in journalism doesn’t insure validity and from my observations, the longer someone is a member of the press corps, the further away they are from reality. I’d like it if the media learned the difference in news and editorial comment – and then just stuck to the news. I know where to find the editorial page. Far too much of what’s presented as news is really just someone’s opinion. What’s really sad is how many people form their own opinions based on what they hear and read, oblivious to the spin. Other viewpoints might be a place to start researching something, but I wish more people really devoted themselves to developing their own opinions, instead of just regurgitating what someone else said. Obviously this is one of my hobby horses. Excuse me for riding it around the room.