Welcome to my living room.

Robyn’s recent post encourages me again to write something about blogging. First, let me say that I like Robyn’s web log and read it frequently. I respect her as a designer and like her writing. But recently she’s brought out that old line about web logs being “private.”

She says:
‘Tis ok. This is what happens when you let crazy liberals blog. ;-) People just need to respect “blog space” as personal living room space. I have the right to say whatever I please in my own home, and in my own blog. Whether or not people choose to agree with it is an entirely different matter…

Now, I’m not picking on Robyn in particular. She’s only one of a number of webloggers who, when they’ve gotten in trouble or accidentally stepped into controversy, defend themselves by saying “my web log is my private space.” She’s just the last person to push this button of mine, and certainly not the most egregious example. Robyn actually does a better job at setting an editorial policy than most web logs I’ve read. But she is a public figure, whether she admits it or not.

What web loggers in general need to appreciate is this: Our web logs are not private space. They are for public consumption.

If our web logs were private, they would be password protected. By putting ourselves online, advertising our product, and encouraging links to our web sites we’ve created an outlet for expressing our ideas and we’ve actively pursued a large, self-selected audience. In short, we are small publishers and public figures. We have the responsibilities and concerns that all small publishers and public figures have. And we should also have the discretion.

This does not mean we are not allowed to express our own opinion. We’re press. It does mean that we are subject to criticism, insult, rude behavior, negative feedback, or other repercussions from something we’ve posted. And we have subjected ourselves to this. It was our choice, implicit in our decision to be public figures and write for an oftentimes anonymous audience.

How you deal with this is entirely up to you. You can be Rush Limbaugh and heap abuse on people, if you like. But saying “why are you picking on me, that’s rude, this is my private living room” is bull. If you want it to be private, keep it private.