BlogHer - Best tool ever to list and find political blogs? Try it - search by state, political party and name. Add yours now! - Comments

You know me too well, it seems!

Koan — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 14:28:05 -0500

Boring and predictable, or steadfast and dependable - you decide! ;)

Anyway, yes, it looks perfect on my trusty Nokia N95.

Of course, one *might* be forgiven for thinking that the US is the only country in the world that talks politics - I went to search by country (rather than state) and was perturbed to find that I *couldn't* search by country. Obviously, there is only one country. I mean, the US is obviously the only country in the world with an election this year.

So if you'll tell me which state I live in - other than permanent confusion - then I'm good to go!

Nice idea

cooper — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 13:07:12 -0500

I find the liberal or conservative thing a better option as I'm sure there are a lot of people, at least people close to my age, committed to the issues rather than the party.

This is a very cool idea.

cooper

Identity crisis

SinCitySiren — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 22:35:23 -0500

Well, first of all, thank you BlogHer for including me in your list!

And I understand why some people might question my "political blogger" status. I have struggled with the idea of categorizing my blog since I started it. (As you can see here http://sincitysiren.wordpress.com/2007/12/11/me-a-political-blogger-or-why-i-left-journalism-and-started-this-blog/)

I spent 8 yeras in journalism and am so tired of being constricted and labeled and put in a box. But I do understand that there are so many blogs out there that people need a way to filter everything.

So, I would say my blog is a political blog. I and my writers post about politics, the environment, activism, feminism, LGBT issues, hating Walmart, access to accurate sex ed, birth control and a lot of issues related to Las Vegas from an eco- or feminist-view. But the quirks and personality of me and my writers do come through. (And yes, sometimes that means the non-political minutia of things like Hello Kitty.) However, I would say that it is through making ourselves relatable to readers that the message really gets through. I guess for me, sometimes I just feel like I can't take myself so seriously, or politics so seriously.

But I would also say that perhaps one of the dilemnas of blogging in general is that it is a world of defining things. And I do wonder, like some other posters, what people would say to the question of "What is a political blog?"

I guess in the end, if you find what you want, then that's all that mattes.

SinCitySiren

This is a great idea!

vickyt — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 16:04:34 -0500

Thanks for such a great tool. Gloria Feldt is going to be using it on her website, GloriaFeldt.com soon. :)

Hard how?

Denise — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:53:09 -0500

Good catch on the Pandagon blog - we worked from a spreadsheet created long ago, when Amanda Marcotte was focusing in NC... remember all of that Edwards stuff?

But you say it was hard to navigate by state? Can you explain what was difficult? It will help us improve the sort functionality.

~Denise
BlogHer Community Manager

Flamingo House Happenings

Eye of the beholder

alyssaroyse — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:39:17 -0500

It's all in the eye of the beholder.

And yes, of course X is unknown except by the individual, that's what makes it tough.

In any event, given that, I stand corrected on that one. But it's still something to keep an eye out for as you / we all grow. Might be an interesting question to ask the readers (again, I don't propose that I am right at all, just my opinion which is worth the paper this paperless post is printed on.)

Forums like this make informal focus groups really easy, and you guys do it really well. "What Do YOU Think is a Political Blogger?" "What are you looking for?" That makes X a little less unknown.

As brands that aggregate content, a lot rests on our ability to do so in a way that serves our users better than anyone else.

For me, protest songs do not a political blog make. Analysis of trends, explaining something, showing me how political decisions made by me, my peers and our politicians will impact the world around me - that's a political blog.

But, I never said I was right, just offering my impression.... If ANYONE can register their blog, how will you know that it is relevant to the list? Current examples not withstanding, it's something to think about.

___________
Alyssa Royse
JUST CAUSE: A Web Site To Save The World

Start Her Up: A blog for Women Entrepreneurs

Cool

rubyji — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:08:06 -0500

I found it a bit hard to navigate/search by state, interface-wise.

Why is Pandagon listed as being in NC?

I like that suggestion a lot

Jill Miller Zimon — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 14:11:45 -0500

I'm ok with being ID'd as a Dem, but in Ohio, no one registers by party - it's not required. And I like that. So I do feel that liberal or left of center better describes my political - i'm not really a "party girl" even though I'm part of an effort to have a formal party in my small town.

But I would be amenable to "liberal" versus "Democrat." I usually describe people as they relate to the center - so, center, left of center, right of center and so on.

Jill
Writes Like She Talks

Democrat/Republican vs. Liberal/Conservative

Liz Rizzo — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 14:05:05 -0500

I wonder if bloggers would be more comfortable identifying as liberal or conservative, versus the more specific Democrat or Republican?

Just a thought, as I cruise the blogs designated as "undecided."

Liz Rizzo

I blog at Everyday Goddess.

Me too!

Jill Miller Zimon — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 13:16:25 -0500

I was just saying that I'm going to have make enough in my writing to justify an iPhone! but I don't know if I REALLY want one - could be dangerous

Jill
Writes Like She Talks

I wish I had an iPhone

Catherine Morgan — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 13:14:22 -0500

I love this widget!!! I now have it on my sidebar, and I have also blogged about it.

But...I don't have an iPhone. :-(

Contributing Editor Catherine Morgan
CatherineBlogs, The Political Voices of Women, Care2 Election Blog

Hah

Denise — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 12:55:51 -0500

This comment arrived in my inbox via comment notification and I thought "gosh that sounds like Koan" - I click and yes indeedy, it is Koan.

:-)

It looks ok on the Nokia? Is that what I understood you to say?

~Denise
BlogHer Community Manager

Flamingo House Happenings

Phew! That's a relief...

Koan — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 12:36:22 -0500

... because when I first accessed this page, La Malkin was at the top.

Once I'd logged in to complain, that unhappy state of affairs had been corrected.

So, I like it! ;)

techPresident

Jill Miller Zimon — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:45:56 -0500

Please think about making sure groups like that get wind of this. Well, I think anyway. :)

Jill
Writes Like She Talks

Sin City Siren meets your criteria

Denise — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:14:30 -0500

I'm sitting there now and on every single page there is political content.

http://sincitysiren.wordpress.com/2008/04/13/tax-day-anti-war-rally/
http://sincitysiren.wordpress.com/2008/04/10/happy-friday-prostest-songs...
http://sincitysiren.wordpress.com/2008/04/08/bad-medicine/

Those three are on the first page. ;-)

This may not be the type of politics you're interested in - but it is political content.

To answer your question " If my user expects X...." I can't predict what user X expects because I can't define X for every user.

X is unknown - except by the individual.

~Denise
BlogHer Community Manager

Flamingo House Happenings

Best tool ever to list and find political blogs? Try it - search by state, political party and name. Add yours now!

Lisa Stone — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 21:29:14 -0500

Do you write or read political blogs? Do you hunt for new ones by state and/or party? Have we got the widget for you:

We're excited to announce our latest project, BlogHer's Guide to Political Bloggers, brought to you by BlogHer's politics team and our friends at Cerado. While we love the many blog-lists that abound of amazing political blogging by women, we got tired of trying to guess which state bloggers are from and/or which party they're in or leaning toward. That's why, as a non-partisan guide to women who blog, BlogHer has developed a widget that you can instantly categorize your blog in and find other bloggers. You can:

* Search by state
* Search by blogger's first or last name
* Search by political party using our color key:
Blue = Democrat
Green = Green
Gray = Undecided
Khaki = Libertarian
Orange = Independent
Purple = Other/Multiparty
Red = Republican

This guide is incredibly easy to use --both to list your blog and then to post on your blog, too. We've pre-loaded it with a few bloggers we know, but hey -- we don't want to make a mistake about where you live and what you think! So rather than pour all 700-ish blogs from the BlogHer Politics blogroll into the mix, we think it's better if you add your blog. Here's how:

How do I add a blog?
A: Click the "Add Yourself" link and answer the questions. You'll be added as soon as you publish!

How do I edit or remove a blog listing?
A: Please email help@blogher.com and put "Guide to Political Bloggers" in the subject line.

How do I put the guide on my site?
A: Go to http://www.blogher.com/bloghers-guide-political-bloggers for more info. (As you'll see, you can download a skinny sidebar widget that's 160x600 pixels or a square widget that's 300x250 pixels.)

How do I reach political bloggers in the guide?
A: Click on a blog name to go to that blog's homepage.

How do I read the guide on my iPhone?
A: Go to http://www.blogher.com/bloghers-guide-political-bloggers for info.

What powers this widget?
A: You. Go add yourself already! And our friends at Cerado, who built it for us using Cerado Ventana (tm).

We hope you're as excited as we are -- this is just one more way in which BlogHer is trying to put the question "Where are the women bloggers?" to rest forever, and to get the word out about what all of you are doing.

So tell us - what do you think of it? What would you do differently? What should our next widget be about?

Really looking forward to your feedback...and a special shout-out to the team who worked so hard on this: BlogHer's Denise Tanton, Morra Aarons-Mele, Erin Kotecki Vest and Cerado's Chris Carfi and Sarah Dopp.