At first glance, most observers might raise an eyebrow if they heard that the United States Treasury has invited the publishers of blogs entitled Naked Capitalism, Financial Armageddon and the Kid Dynamite?s World for a meeting with the most influential leaders in Washington, DC. But to the surprise of many, this is precisely what President Barack Obama?s administration did?he extended an invitation to key players in the financial blogging community to meet with Treasury officials and give their thoughts on the state of the American economy. A total of eight bloggers were offered this exclusive invitation, which served as perhaps the most obvious indication yet of how influential blogging has become. Bloggers played a major role in swaying and formulating public opinion during the 2008 election campaign, and it is no secret that while Republicans tended to enjoy the upper hand in talk radio, many blogs were strongly supportive of the Democratic campaign. </p> <p>But this hardly means that bloggers today have checked their critical faculties at the door when it comes to the Obama Administration. In fact, one blogger described the meeting with Treasury officials as ?curious? and several of them later wrote with concern that the White House has not yet devised an alternative economic plan, if the economy does not recover in 2010, as they now expect. Most bloggers also left with the impression that the administration?s plans for economic reform were being impeded by the influence that Wall Street and private interest groups still have over government. </p> <p>Many bloggers were, however, fascinated by the candid comments made by top Treasury officials. In fact, several admitted to these emissaries of the Blogosphere their concern that the current signs of modest economic recovery may only be a blip and that this fear keeps them up at night.<br />

An Iranian-Canadian blogger imprisoned by authorities in Tehran for speaking out against human rights abuses in his country of origin is at the centre of a movement led by blogs and their readers to bolster online freedom of expression. Hossein Derakhshan?known more commonly among fellow bloggers as Hoder?has been held in an Iranian prison for a year, on the charge that he engaged in espionage for Israel. A massive international campaign has grown in the Blogosphere and among those who embrace social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to free Hoder, who has been widely credited with popularizing blogging among young Iranians. </p> <p>Derakshan?s bravery in promoting blogs in a country that is among the most repressive anywhere in the world was rewarded by major publications, including The Guardian, where Hoder would contribute articles. But since his detention, little is known about has happened with this prominent blogger. Derakhshan?s family members have reportedly told media outlets that the pioneer blogger has been tortured while in prison, but these reports have not yet been confirmed. </p> <p>Those who are actively lobbying for Hoder?s release from prison and against the notion that any blogger should be imprisoned for airing his/her views online, are worried that Tehran may have become even more authoritarian in its approach to online content. Popular unrest and dissatisfaction with the regime this past July was bolstered by bloggers and social networking sites, and this has made an already repressive regime even more suspicious of online activity<br />

Mary Tomer hardly knew what she was getting into when she decided to enter the fashion industry for the first time with a blog focused on American First Lady Michelle Obama?s unique choice of wardrobe. After decades of seeing first ladies in conventional pants-suits, Mrs. Obama?s decision to dress in a far more glamorous manner caught the attention of even those observers who had precious little interest in fashion. Tomer fell into this category, but she would never have guessed that her blog, Mrs-O.org, would be read each day by people from 221 countries around the world.</p> <p>The blogger?s success likely boils down to three important factors. First, Tomer focuses on a well-defined topic and as such, she has carved out a niche market for herself. Rather than attempting to write about everything under the sun or run an ill-defined, general blog about fashion, Tomer recognized that Mrs. Obama?s sartorial choices interest audiences around the world. As such, the blog is narrowly focused on a topic of great interest to readers. A second factor relates to Google searchability. Writing a successful blog has a lot to do with choosing the right keywords, since Google uses these when it comes to indexing. ?Obama? is clearly one of the most popular keywords and combining this with ?fashion? ensures visibility.</p> <p>The third factor is possibly the most important. Tomer is committed to her Mrs. O fashion blog and she publishes posts on a daily basis. The key to success is to keep readers that you already have by offering them an informal agreement that you will update your blog at regular intervals. You can be the best writer with top notch ideas, but publishing first-class articles only intermittently will not get you very far in the Blogosphere.</p> <p>Mary Tomer?s efforts have paid off very nicely. According to Associated Press fashion columnist Samantha Critchell, the avid blogger has landed a book contract for a publication entitled Mrs. O: The Face of Fashion Democracy.

</p> <p>Lily Allen, Miley Cyrus and Courtney Love. These are just a few of the high-profile names that appear to have sparked a celebrity exodus of social networking website Twitter.</p> <p>As celebs begin to quit in their droves, Stephen Fry has become the latest big name to threaten an end to minute-by-minute updates.</p> <p>And with nearly one million followers, a Fry exit could spell disaster for the website that made its name by attracting the best-known personalities on the planet.</p> <p>Fry?s quit threat came after a fan accused him of being boring, to which he responded, ?I?m obviously not good enough. I retire from Twitter henceforward. Bye everyone.?</p> <p>Following the post, Fry was bombarded with thousands of messages pleading with him to reconsider ? begging the question, are celebrity updates the cornerstone of Twitter?s success, and if so, could Twitter sustain its winning formula minus big name input?</p> <p>To put some perspective on its reliance on big name updates, when Miley Cyrus ended her love affair with Twitter last month, one fan threatened to cook their pet cat if she fails to return to the micro-blogging site.</p> <p>Earlier this year, movie megastar, Denzel Washington, and Curb Your Enthusiasm actor, Larry David, were amongst a host of celebrities to quit the social network, leaving Twitter users wondering if the end is nigh.</p> <p>But it?s not just the world of celebrity that a downturn in Twitter?s popularity could influence.</p> <p>The Twitter effect has even managed to infiltrate the political arena, most recently acting as the playground for debate on Professor David Nutt?s dismissal as the leading drugs adviser to the British government, following his well-documented row over the legality of cannabis.</p> <p>Lord Drayson, the Science and Innovation Minister, commented on his Twitter page that he would be ?asking why he was not informed, getting facts, and finding a solution?, in regards to Nutt?s dismissal.

There are a few different ways you can ensure that your content is written in language that your site visitors understand. One is to talk to them, not at them. Another strategy that you can adopt for your web site is to offer content in the language your site visitors speak.

Lancashire detective constable Richard Horton?much better known among blogging enthusiasts as Jack Night?went from being an unknown, local law enforcement officer, to one of Britain?s most prominent and successful blogging celebrities. This story showed yet again how blogs can transform people with run-of-the-mill careers into online sensations. Earlier this year, Horton won a special Orwell prize set aside for the most accomplished bloggers. What seemed to impress jury members the most about the Jack Night blog was its authentic subject matter, as well as the very candid voice that Horton used in blogging about difficult subjects, namely investigations into child abuse cases, the growing problem of thuggish behaviour in some British cities and instances of muggings. </p> <p>Relatively few blogs focus on the field of law enforcement and crime. As such, the Jack Night website seemed to carve out a unique niche audience and claimed a largely neglected market. Blogging seems to be most popular in the fields of travel, technology, entertainment, investment and real estate, but Horton seemed to understand that if there is a significant public appetite for crime novels, then there may very well be just as much interest in a blog focused on the life of a police officer.</p> <p>Horton received </p>

A blogger academy has opened in perhaps one of the most unlikely places on earth, namely in communist Cuba; a country which has restricted freedom of expression for the past five decades. But it now appears as though even the island nation?s anachronistic communist leaders have come to realize that they can do little to completely halt the spread of blogging, online content writing and social networking. The Bloggers Academy of Cuba opened its doors to blogging fans for the first time yesterday. According to a report in the Miami Herald, 28 Cubans showed up for the first day of courses. </p> <p>While the first blogs appeared in western countries 10 years ago, blogging is an almost entirely new phenomenon in Cuba and as such, bloggers must learn nearly everything from scratch. But many of these aspiring bloggers will make use of Yoani S</p>

It seems as though Coca Cola?undoubtedly one of the most recognized brands throughout the world?has come to realize that hiring public relations staff and sending out dry press releases on new products is no longer enough for twenty-first century, net-savvy consumers. Coca Cola has decided to send out three experienced bloggers in order to travel the world and find out what consumers like the most and, indirectly, market their products and brand. </p> <p>This project is the most prominent and wide-reaching effort on the part of any major corporation to use blogs and social media tools in order to raise the popularity of their products and connect with consumers. Coca Cola?s bloggers will be sent out to a total of 206 countries around the world, where the firm?s soft drinks are sold. They will then meet with ?ordinary? consumers to find out what bring joy to their lives, as part of Coca Cola?s so-called ?Open Happiness? campaign. </p> <p>Coca Cola will announce later this week who the three lucky, world-trotting bloggers will be, based upon an online voting system that the company has set up. As such, Coca Cola has clearly found a way to use the internet, in order to engage consumers in their decision-making process and thus raise the status of their brand. Once the three bloggers have been voted in, they will travel the world for a full year and will spend no more than one or two days in each of the 206 countries. While the schedule will undoubtedly be hectic?as they will produce blog entries in each state, as well as post Twitter updates and engage in video blogging?absolutely all of their expenses will be covered by Coca Cola. </p> <p>The selected bloggers will start travelling on January 1, 2010 and will visit a staggering total of 17 countries during the first four weeks of their trip.<br />

Keywords can be considered a necessary evil when it comes to writing for the web. On one hand, you want to make sure that your content is appealing to search engines. It would be a mistake, though, to ignore the fact that you also need to have content that meets the needs of the humans who use the Internet as well.

According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, one third of all Fortune 100 companies maintain corporate blogs and view this as a key way to attract a loyal base of customers. The fact that the world?s most widely recognized brands turn to blogs--despite their history of business success and their solid position in the corporate world--only reinforces how important it is for small and medium-sized firms to follow suit and enhance their web presence through blogging. </p> <p>More than ever before, blogs are serving as corporate spokespeople and nothing illustrates this better than the actions of a Microsoft spokesman during a recent news conference. The Wall Street Journal reported that the technology giant?s spokesman told a journalist who had just asked a question to visit two blogs written by Microsoft employees, if she wanted the most accurate information. Some of the largest professional sports teams in the United States have adopted a similar approach?they now increasingly direct journalists and interested parties to their corporate blogs, rather than simply passing on a dry, mundane press release.</p> <p>Perhaps not surprisingly, Microsoft appears to be the world leader when it comes to corporate blogging?the multinational firm now counts approximately 2,500 blogs in total, all of which are regularly updated. Rick Murphy serves as the president of Edelman Digital, and he noted that a blog is not only useful for firms because it provides them with extra online exposure, but also because it can serve as a great way to address sensitive issues or concerns. In some cases, a firm may not wish to enter into a lengthy debate over a given issue in the media or during news conferences. Using blogs, however, they can make their own vantage point is presented in a controlled environment, without the risk of being thrown off topic.<br />