Final Assignment: Final Paper on Blogs

8/10/2019 Final Assignment: Final Paper on Blogs

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Running head: FINAL PAPER 1

Final Paper

Benefits of Blogging to Convey Information

Justin Ernst

Kean University/ Nathan Weiss Graduate School




Communicating information is extremely important. Any communication scholar knows

that utilizing multiple channels to communicate a message is always more effective than a single

channel. For instance, if a school wants to convey the message of what a day in the life of a

student is, the school’s webmaster will typically have a tab on the school’s website entitled

“Campus Life” or something similar. Potential students may see that as advertising since it is

coming from the school rather than a current student. Blogs give students the opportunities to

give their own takes on student life. In fact, a blog can be applied to any scenario as another

outlet for information to be communicated.

To fully understand the capability of a blog, it is vital to understand what a blog actually

is. “Weblogs (blogs, webjournals) are web pages that involve diary-like entries from the blog

owner on personal issues and/or items/topics of interest” (Baker, & Moore, 2011, pg 387). A

blog is such a useful form to convey information because of the nature of the format of the blog.

Blogs are not just one way forms of communication, but rather a form of two way

communication in that it encourages the audience to participate upon completion of an entry by

the author. The audience is able to give honest feedback in regards to what they thought about in

what was presented to them. “An important part of the blogging experience is the invitation to

others to respond or give feedback to the blog content, so that a dialogue or chat room-like

situation may ensue” (Baker, & Moore, 2011, pg 387), and this is what gives the blog such an

advantage over other forms of information conveyance.

Audience engagement and open communication is something that is very important to

effective communication. Blogs are champions of this form of communication and by their very

nature allow for people to connect at astounding rates. Researchers are able to publish their

findings through their blog and be able to instantly get feedback from anyone who may have read




their post. When a researcher just utilizes a tool such as an academic journal, it may take a very

long time to connect with others in the community or field that they support. Between sending an

article in to be reviewed by the journal editors to for their specifications, the revisions, the

resubmission, and the publishing, it could be a very lengthy process before anyone actually gets

to see the article. On top of that, interaction and feedback is typically only receivable by mail in

the form of a letter. Blogs allow for this process to be almost instant.

“Depending on the author’s wishes, blogs can include features such as links to other

blogs, information about the author, and, most importantly, comments (feedback) from readers”

(Ellison & Wu, 2008, pg 105). This goes to show how the versatility that a blog can offer plays

into how effective it is as an information conveyance device. Plus, simply keeping up with the

addition of new entries can greatly affect the way a person can write. This is “Because the

blogging format encourages students to engage with positions divergent from their own,

blogging can potentially enhance analytic and critical thinking skills. Students may be more

invested in their writing if they know they are writing for an Internet audience and their peers, as

opposed to only an instructor” (Ellison & Wu, 2008, pg 105). It is evident that keeping up with a

blog, students are able to increase their writing capabilities, which in turn increases their ability

to communicate information more effectively. This can be applied to anyone who utilizes a blog

of course.

In a recent study (Kilk & Gokdas), which poled pre service teachers, 75% of teachers had

confirmed that blogs enhanced their learning. Plus, 80% of them also stated that they felt that

blog discussions had helped them to share their knowledge and experiences with their peers.

These statistics support the fact that blogs are a successful way to convey information. The only

limitations are people’s technological savvy and the blog’s structure. People who do not know




much about computers or the internet may be intimidated at first by the utilization of a blog

which is always a concern. However with technology becoming more of an integral part of

everyday life, more people are becoming acquainted to it and its benefits. However that still

doesn’t account for a blog’s proper set up.

Setting up a blog is extremely important in regard to its success in ability to convey

information and to get people to come back to receive new information. “Bloggers regard blogs

as their own publically accessible virtual space, and so besides textual content, also utilize

arrangements of visual features such as images and color to make that space unique” (Hsu &

Chuang, 2013, pg 453). It is important to note that there is no clear cut layout for how a blog

should look like or the most ideal way either. Each blog layout should be catered to fit the needs

of the blogger. Hsu and Chuang (2013) conducted a study to see what factors people find

appealing in a blog. Their study concluded that people look for image type, layout type, image

quality, color, text-image ratio, liveliness and creativity, refinement, and technicality when

resorting to a blog. People were more likely to process the information presented on a blog if

they found that these factors were favorable to them in terms of the blog’s layout and structure.

“Many studies have shown that a good user interface is key to attracting users to return to a

website, and suggested that website developers or owners need a greater understanding of how to

add value to user experience or affective responses through visual interface” (Hsu & Chuang,

2013, pg 462). The information posted on a blog is really only useful when it is being spread to

people.

Reasons like this are why schools are utilizing students to write blogs for their website.

Students are generally creative being that they are immersed in a learning environment and are

forced to think creatively and critically. Plus the big upside to this model, is that students eat,




breath, and live in a very specific culture. The culture of college life is one that is interesting.

College students know it better than anyone else which is why admissions are having students

talk about their experiences. It is important note that prospective college students are generally

more inclined to trust other college students about life on a campus. The college is attempting to

persuade incoming college students into attending their schools and the utilization of the student

ran blogs are certainly a great tool. In a persuasive situation, credibility is king and college

students will probably find others like them as being the most credible in this given situation.

However it is equally important to understand just how credibility people generally have within a

blog.

According to Johnson and Kaye (2004) most journalists would consider a blog as

trustworthy and credible since many journalists rely on blogs for story ideas and information. It

should be noted that anyone can make a blog and that there is no official governing body to

screen the information to ensure its accuracy. Wikipedia follows a very similar model where

anyone can make an entry, and there is no official body to ensure its accuracy. The difference

there is that people are able to edit Wikipedia entries, whereas only the author of the blog can

change the information presented. However, this doesn’t mean that the information is not

inherently correct and that there is not anyone out there who will not point out the discrepancies

in the information. “Blogs do rely, however, on peer review of other bloggers to point out

mistakes that can be easily and prominently corrected” (Johnson & Kaye, 2004, pg 624). Plus,

“blog users may trust information they receive from weblogs because they believe the hosts do

not hide their biases” (Johnson & Kaye, 2004, pg 634-635). This tells us that even if the blogger

does present a bias, they make it very clear and known to their readers. This allows for the

readers to feel like they are not being tricked.




Blogs are certainly quite useful in conveying information and are evidently a useful tool

in doing so. There is scientific research and data to back blogs up. People consider them credible

despite the fact that anyone can start their own blog and post whatever information they please.

When a blog looks pleasing to the viewers, those people will more than likely read the content

and process it, while probably revisiting the blog at a later date for more information. Not every

blog has to be strictly scientific facts though. Student ran blogs can offer other students

information in what to do around campus or even a fun idea for a trip off campus The important

thing is that blogs are increasingly becoming a form of media that more people want to utilize

and look to for information. This is why blogs are considered such a good way of conveying

information to a wide audience.




References

Baker, J., & Moore, S. (2011). An Opportunistic Validation of Studies on the Psychosocial

Benefits of Blogging. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 14(6), 387-

390. Retrieved December 18, 2014, from Academic Search Premier.

Ellison, N. B., & Wu, Y. (2008). Blogging in the classroom: A preliminary exploration of

student attitudes and impact on comprehension. Journal of Educational Multimedia and H

ypermedia, 17(1), 99-122. Retrieved December 18, 2014, from Academic Search

Premier.

Hsu, C., & Chuang, M. (2013). The Relationship Between Design Factors and Affective

Response in Personalized Blog Interfaces. The Oxford Joural, 26 (5), 450-464. Retrieved

December 20, 2014, from Academic Search Premier.

Johnson, T., & Kaye, B. (2004). WAG THE BLOG: HOW RELIANCE ON TRADITIONAL

MEDIA AND THE INTERNET INFLUENCE CREDIBILITY PERCEPTIONS OT

WEBLOGS AMONG BLOG USERS. Journalism and Mass Communication

Quarterly, 81(3), 622-642. Retrieved December 20, 2014, from Communication and

Mass Complete.

Kilic, E., & Gokdas, I. (2014). Learning through Blogging: Use of Blogs to Enhance the

Perceived Learning of Pre-service ICT Teachers. Educational Science: Theory and

Practice,14(3), 1169-1177. Retrieved December 19, 2014, from Academic Search

Premier.

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Final Assignment: Final Paper on Blogs