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My heart sank when this morning's segment on the Today Show started off with Hoda Kotb announcing "... the growing popularity of... 'mommy blogs.'" She used air quotes, and everything. You could've substituted anything bizarre and mystifying in the quotations, actually. "Alien bloodsuckers," or "giant pink sea monsters," for example.
I turned to my husband. "This is not going to end well," I said.
But first, let me back up.
A couple of months ago, I was approached by an NBC producer to participate in a "blogger round table discussion" to be used on the Today Show. Fellow blogging moms Kristen Chase and Jill Asher had been invited, as well, and we were told we'd sit down for a very informal discussion with NBC correspondent Janet Shamlian. After discussing it with each other and our trusted advisors, we all agreed to do it.
I can't speak for the other women involved, of course, but as for myself, I can tell you that I was pleasantly surprised by the experience. It was fun! Janet was warm and genuine and she knew her stuff -- she's read blogs, she's read our blogs, and she asked smart questions. We talked for hours, and cracked jokes about how it would end up being ten or twenty seconds of actual air time.
This morning, the Today Show aired the segment. The discussion Janet held with Kristen, Jill and myself was used as a bit of backdrop in a piece that was, in turn, the backdrop for a live interview with Heather Armstrong.
Take a look at what was aired:
While there are things I wish they'd done differently relative to the presentation of the round table discussion, my strongest feeling after watching this in its entirety is an overwhelming sense that NBC missed a prime opportunity.
Yes, mommyblogging (air quotes or not) is hot right now. Big companies are taking notice. There is money to be made. This is not new information. Digging a little deeper would be new information, and rather than sharing some of the interesting and even profound things that came to light during our blogger discussion, or asking Heather questions that she hasn't been asked previously, or -- here's an idea -- letting her actually get out a complete thought, what could've been a great segment about moms who blog became The Story Of How Kathie Lee Gifford Is Afraid Of Her Computer.
I'm going to sit firmly on my hands and let others make the point.
Life in the Garden settles for a gentle jab:
Kathy Lee was clueless to the concept [that blogging can make money]. Who Knew that this blog thingy on the interweb could cost you your job and possibly create a new revenue stream?
Susan at Working Moms Against Guilt doesn't mince words:
Kathie Lee was such a poor choice as the interviewer. Apparently, she doesn't "do" computers or the Internet, and therefore doesn't really know what blogs are. But she gave it the old college try--and sucked. Fortunately, her cluelessness made the bloggers look even smarter and sassier, which is just fine.
Amidst the many folks Twittering and blogging about Gifford's multiple "haha" references to not knowing how to turn her computer on and how she "doesn't do" computers, her continual harping on Heather for potential privacy concerns in blogging also came under fire.
I could hear Sarah's eyes rolling from hundreds of miles away:
I enjoyed the segment even if Kathie Lee Gifford is pretty much a tool and obviously hasn’t spent much time reading blogs. Did she actually say she was afraid of the computer?
She is worried about Dooce exposing her child to people, yet I know what Kathie Lee’s kids names are and what they look like too. What is the difference between talking about your personal life on a blog or talking about your personal life on a morning talk show. Oh, right. People are still reading blogs on a regular basis.
Jennie at Preteens, Toddlers, and Newborns, Oh My! is also calling for the clue phone:
And here's my question for Kathie Lee: How is what we are doing any different from you blathering on about your children, showing photos and bringing them on camera over national television for 15 years? I would think someone like Kathie Lee would be a little less likely to judge another woman after all the flack she's taken over the years. I think this is
