While it may seem that bloggers are writing in a diary or personal journal, the reality is that their blogs are a means of social interaction, ranging from large audiences to small networks of friends. Mark Granovetter theorizes that weak ties between individuals are more important than strong ties, because if a blogger posts something that a close friend reposts, approximately the same group of people will see it; if a more distant ("weak tie") friend reposts, a very different group of people will be able to add their opinions. This is most apparent in the number of links leading back to the original blog - with more weak tie friends, the news gets out to a wider variety of people, who are then likely to share the link with their friends. Having more links is commonly equated with being more powerful in the blogosphere.
Because of this system of bloggers linking to one another, it is clear that there is no central hub in the blogging world; this is a distributed network, the category that is becoming more and more popular. An example of the other main category - a centralized network - would be a news body such as CNN, in which all pieces link back to this central hub. With the interlinking in blogging systems, the tendency of a blog to be like a book is minimized. Despite the blogger not being able to have immediate access to his readers and the blog's persistence in archives, linking among blogs reduces the solo feeling of a printed book and allows for a social network to be created.
Some social networks (for example, Myspace and Facebook) include blogging features but place more emphasis on the other parts of their sites, such as photo, video, and music capabilities. Like some blogs, these websites allow for privacy settings so that only mutual friends or even further restrictions of 'custom friend groups' can view certain content. dinah boyd presents four characteristics of online social spaces that differentiate them from offline social spaces:
1. Persistence - Content posted to the internet may stay there even after the author attempts to delete it
2. Searchability - The internet may be searched for people and used to locate what content they have added
3. Replicable - Any photos or writings posted may be modified or copied without the author's knowledge
4. Invisible Audiences - It is never 100% certain who is viewing the blog and its profile.
One danger of online and offline social networking is that when they collide, the effect on a person may be large. For example, some bloggers have been fired for what they have shared online, and many teenagers do not wish for their mothers to use the same sites as them to conceal certain personal information. Many bloggers are familiar with the constant juggling act required to keep on and offline social circles from intersecting painfully. Perhaps more interesting, however, is the theoretical side of the whole issue - where will blogs and other online social networks be ten, twenty, even fifty years from now?
Bloggers are increasingly being seen as similar to journalists, because both tell a story in every piece of writing they compose. However, bloggers often have more freedom in their writings, whereas journalists are restrained in length and subject area. Yet many people find journalists more credible than bloggers who aren't associated with a publishing or news company. One of the most important differences between bloggers and journalists relates to "gatewatching" - the controls that govern journalism and other forms of traditional media to ensure proper research and writing prior to publication. While there are no stringent or official regulations for blogs, Alex Burns explains that an informal gatewatching occurs simply through viewer interest. Bloggers also can sometimes find fault and/or inaccuracy in traditional media reporting, which adds another levelof gatewatching. B logs written by by individuals do often link to more mainstream media, but it is important to also note that they often link to other blogger's sites on these stories instead of the actual mainstream media. Larger sites suchas Slashdot tend to have more "gatewatching" than smaller sites which does cut down on this.
Overall, blogs can often serve much the same purposes as traditional media. They allow citizens to voice their opinions and bring to light controversial subject matters. Both blogs and mainstream media must gauge the responsiveness of their audiences. Rettberg argues that these two forms of media equally need each other to thrive. Yet only 5% of bloggers consider themselves journalists; this is not yet a common issue and has only rarely been a legal problem. Even bloggers who are experiencing an event first-hand (for example, a student at Columbine during the shootings) believe that they are just sharing their life, not reporting on an incident for all the world to read. The future will probably bring a legal definition for which bloggers are and which aren't journalists, but in the meantime, it may be best to refer to these people in the way in which they refer to themselves
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