The Bullpen

[Hassan T]

I have noticed lately that a lot of bloggers news come from following creators or people on twitter. What they do is they see something interesting and post it as news, which is no different than we do on this wonderful message board.  Before twitter, it seemed that there was more work involved trying to get "news" or "opinions". But now, it seems like there is no effort and all it involve is posting the comments (similar to retweeting) on their website.

It seems a very lazy approach to comic book journalism. Of course, some might argue that there isn't any really journalism in this industry.

[Dean S.]

I agree with you partially.  The reprinting of press materials shoveled out by the publishers is really lazy.  That's what you see when every blog is running the same 6 page preview of an upcoming X-Men comic.  I especially wonder what the hell is going on when smaller blogs do that (considering that CBR, Newsarama, etc. are running the same previews).

However, there is SOME value to summarizing useful things that happened on Twitter.  If you're on Twitter and follow top creators and editors, you can pretty quickly end up with ~250 accounts to follow.  In there you've got TONS of mildly amusing stuff like Gabriel Hardman showing some old comics he bought at a flea market, Dan Panosian taking about his martial arts workouts, Ryan Stegman talking about his son's 17 week birthday, etc.  For every industry-specific cool tweet, there are probably 1000 that fall under the category of amusing BS.

So.....I don't begrudge someone reposting something cool they say if they happened to find something neat among all the small stuff. 

But, you're right, it isn't high journalism.

[BobBretall]

I don't consider (most) bloggers to be journalists.   Most are commentators or reviewers and that is not anything like being a journalist.

What disappoints me is when "news" sites like Newsarama & CBR do little besides regurgitate press releases with no journalistic insight or investigation.   Or when they all run pretty much the same scripted interviews.

[JoeyN]

What disappoints me is when "news" sites like Newsarama & CBR do little besides regurgitate press releases with no journalistic insight or investigation.   Or when they all run pretty much the same scripted interviews.

Or report news a week later as a breaking story or an exclusive, when everyone has known about it. It happens far too often these days in all types of news outlets.  

Twitter is a great resource for news, as if you follow enough of the right people you know about news way before any web site reports it.

[Scott C.]

Twitter is a great resource for news, as if you follow enough of the right people you know about news way before any web site reports it.

So, for you people who use Twitter as a news source, how many people do you follow? 

I rarely follow creators so I'm one of those who gets my news from forums or Newsarama.

[JoeyN]

I follow 299 people, but only around 60-70 post daily.  

[itullus]

There is VERY little long-form jouralism on the internet. Sure, retweeting blogs/articles seems a little lazy, but even the things they refer to are typically shallow in their analysis. It's all just 'quick snippets' of information that treat everyone like they have ADHD.

I would like to see more long-form journalism, but unfortunately, most people do not seem all that interested.

I'm hoping tablet PC's will change that. I would like to log into a site, pick an article with some meat on it, and sit down for 30 minutes to read a nice, in-depth analysis of a subject. People may be more likely to do that on a tablet than they would be sitting in front of a full computer. Who knows...

[Dean S.]

I would like to see more long-form journalism, but unfortunately, most people do not seem all that interested.

Oh, I think there's interest in it, but it's really hard to do.  There just aren't that many people who write long-form well enough to hold a reader's interest.  And....if you can do that, you can probably write for a site that pays.

[JoeyN]

I'm hoping tablet PC's will change that. I would like to log into a site, pick an article with some meat on it, and sit down for 30 minutes to read a nice, in-depth analysis of a subject

The only subject you really see that in online is with computer tech. You can read 20 page reviews/analysis on pieces of hardware. The rest, 95% of the online population want quick opinions or news. Hit and Run consumption. I do like reading long articles on certain subjects, but I don't need a review of a single comic issue, that is longer then the issue itself.  

[Jeppe]

There is VERY little long-form jouralism on the internet. Sure, retweeting blogs/articles seems a little lazy, but even the things they refer to are typically shallow in their analysis. It's all just 'quick snippets' of information that treat everyone like they have ADHD.

I would like to see more long-form journalism, but unfortunately, most people do not seem all that interested.

The New York Review of Comic Books? Yes please 

[itullus]

Oh, I think there's interest in it, but it's really hard to do.  There just aren't that many people who write long-form well enough to hold a reader's interest.  And....if you can do that, you can probably write for a site that pays.

You speak truth. I'm just hoping it gets better over the next few years.

The only subject you really see that in online is with computer tech. You can read 20 page reviews/analysis on pieces of hardware. The rest, 95% of the online population want quick opinions or news. Hit and Run consumption. I do like reading long articles on certain subjects, but I don't need a review of a single comic issue, that is longer then the issue itself.  

I understand not wanting long-winded articles, but it would be good to hear an occasional "state of the industry" article that breaks things down a little more than they do currently. I honestly think podcast discussions are probably the best places for this type of thing right now, but with that advent of certain magazine apps (i.e. Zite and others), I hope people will expand their content a little more.

[Dean S.]

I understand not wanting long-winded articles, but it would be good to hear an occasional "state of the industry" article that breaks things down a little more than they do currently. I honestly think podcast discussions are probably the best places for this type of thing right now, but with that advent of certain magazine apps (i.e. Zite and others), I hope people will expand their content a little more.

Yeah....well done long form is great.  It may not always be what you're in the mood for, but magazines/sites like The New Yorker or Rolling Stone will always be viable because they have such outstanding writers. 

[Hassan T]

There are long-form analysis on the industry on the Internet already. They are called podcasts and they are better than any blog I know.