When is a blogger a journalist and a journalist a blogger…..?

The blogosphere has been afire with opinion on Mark Cuban’s decision to ban bloggers from the Dallas Mavericks locker room. I only know he has done this because I have seen the Google alerts on it coming across my Blackberry. I have not read his Blog Maverick post on it. Why? I really don’t care if bloggers are banned from the Mavs locker room. It is nothing that causes an “emotional rise” in me. I have a general sense that bloggers are pissed about it but have not spent much time reading their opinions on it. That is the key word here…. opinion…….

I don’t always agree with Mark. Being his brother does not make me his yes man. I generally however keep my mouth shut as most things he blogs about because I don’t have the background or experience to give me any credibility in my opinion.

Hence the key word again, opinion……

I blog on things that cause an emotional rise in me. There are exceptions but I generally blog on things that I feel my educational, occupational background or personal experience give me credibility to talk about or it is such a general issue that anyone has credibility to talk about it. If you look at the variety of things I offer my opinion about in my blogs, they are generally law, satire or social or simple personal observations….. Wait, there is that dam word again….. opinion…..

I love to blog. I put out about 3-4 pieces a week on the average. Blogging saves me a ton of money I would be spending on therapy……I don’t know a lot about much but I have a lot of opinions. Wait…. There it is again…..that pesky word…”opinion”.

Bloggers, including myself, do nothing more than offer opinions and personal observations. Including myself. Our content is basically op-eds. We are not subject to any educational requirements, standards of content or accountability. There are journalists that blog, but again, there is a huge difference between what they put out with their “journalist hat” on and their blogger hat…. The biggest difference is accountability on multiple levels as a journalist. Their next meal may count on living up to those accountability standards. Journalists are fired all the time for failing to live up to those standards. Who fires a blogger? The only accountability bloggers have is that imposed on the general public by state or federal law not to defame anyone….. Frankly, I have a much bigger issue with journalist who blog because their status as a journalist gives their blog an air of credibility it may not deserve…. For that reason I feel that journalists have an ethical responsibility not to blur the line between opinion and journalistic content unless it is made very clear that they are stating opinion. You can’t have it both ways……

Come on every one get over it……. If you want to be thought of as a journalist, get the education and pay your dues like real ones do. It may not make you a better writer(I know some terrible journalists) but it may get you that free bottled water and sandwich in the Mavs locker room that bloggers don’t get anymore……

Just my opinion……..