For those of you who don’t know, anthropology is the study of humanity, it is an in depth look at their society and culture. Blogging in my opinion is one small part of humanity, and there is definitely such a thing as a blogging culture. An ethnography is the method by which anthropologists conduct their study, and it is also the end result and text of anthropology.
Communication
Bloggers have their own form of communication – that’s easy, bloggers communicate online through their blogs, commenting on blogs and various social networking providers. A blogger must use these forms of communications to be truly considered among the blogging culture.
Social Structure and Belief Systems
Bloggers have social rules to which they must abide or they will be shunned from the group. This is a social form of control that is generally seen in smaller cultures that are not run by state or by other forms of leaders. It is the society itself that “polices” those within it.
Here are a few of these such rules that I am sure we can mostly agree upon:
- You cannot insulate yourself from your “people”. You must contribute to the social environment and to promoting the blogging culture. It is on those within your group that you will depend upon in your time of blogging need.
- The status quo need not be respected. This is one feature that is very unique as most cultures depend on the maintenance of the status quo as essentially that is what culture is, the protection and transmission into future generations of the rules and stories of that culture. In the blogosphere however sometimes it is important to shake things up, or be the first to say something. This is an extremely interesting aspect of blogging culture.
- You cannot play yourself up to be better than other bloggers. This will mean your downfall. There are a few cultures that I studied that are very similar – men will go hunting for example, and one man will catch a large animal, but he will downplay the size and say things like: “oh, it is so scrawny” or “I am ashamed that I have caught such a small animal”. This is to ensure that those around him do not feel bad for not having caught it. Blogging is the same way. Even though you might be better at it or more successful, your success still depends on having other bloggers around you to read your blog. And the hunter’s catch would be go bad in the desert if there was no one there to help him carry it home and ensure that it was eaten.
- Do not spam the blogs of others. This is tantamount to stealing: you steal the blogger’s time as they must deal with the spam and also you are trying to steal promotion and links from their blogs. The blogging culture is based on the a vision for contribution and conversation, and to detract from this and debase it is a big social faux-pas.
Economy
The blogging culture subsists by selling ads, links, and reviews. The money made generally comes from without the blogosphere. The real currency of bloggers though consists of links, and it is these links that are traded between members of this unique society.
Blogging Bigmanship
Bigmanship, which is found in varying forms in many Oceanic regions (ex. Melanesia), involves the exercise of power and authority by using “cajolery and intrigue, as well as good husbandry and economic sense, to further one’s ambitions” (from Oceanic Religions, Encyclopedia of Religion). John Chow for example is a perfect example of this phenomenon in the blogger culture.
We all have our own lives outside of blogging (I hope), but when you sit down at the computer you become a blogger. And you belong to a true blogging society, and much like any other cultural group, it is important to remember that the saying “when in Rome, do as the Romans” is not just something people say to waste their breath. It is a comment on social relativism and the ability to adapt to your environment. So you want to have a blog, do as the bloggers.
Read this post in Spanish: Breve etnografia de la Blogosfera
Image source: Lexicus Cultural Anthropology
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