Ever wonder what some non-English speaking parts of the blogosphere are like? I do. And there’s an interesting write up in the Nation on Russia’s blogosphere and how its a bit different than that of North America or even Western Europe.
For example, it makes the case that, in Russia …
- Blogs are an increasingly legitimate and lively alternative to mainstream media
- The first Russian language blog was started in 2001
- The largest and most popular blogging community is called “Zhivoi Zhurnal”
- People who read blogs in Russia are likely to read, on average, 50-60 blogs regularly
- Most blogs on ZheZhe tend to be highly politicized and have been used to organize rallies, demonstrations, and more
- Recognition of the influence of blogs has led to some thinking that the Russian government may be paying political bloggers to sway influence
It also finishes off with an interesting comparison between the blogosphere in Russia versus that in the Arab world. For more, check out the original article which tells a lot about another side of the blogosphere we (and I use the royal “we”) don’t often get a chance to see or read about.
