The State Of The Berkshire Blogosphere

With the release of the official table listing the best Berkshire blogs it's worth looking at the local blogosphere in a bit more detail.

The first inklings that locally-based blogs were likely to have an impact on the wider world came when BBC Berkshire published a feature focusing attention on Alistair Coleman's award-winning Scary Duck blog in which he gives some tips on how to make a blog stand out.

But the big recent news has been the demise of several sites for varying reasons.

Early adopter Jane Griffiths' Jane's The One suffered a malware attack (we can only guess at the attacker), but she has resurfaced with Jane Is The One to prove that you can't keep a good 'un down.

MuckSpReading's daily satire on the local scene has also dried up, but one suspects this is more to do with time issues and potential conflicts of interests for it's creator, who has since landed himself in political office. Matt Brady mourns the passing of "one of Reading’s most entertaining and popular blogs" and hopes a new independently managed site will emerge to fill the vacuum.

The big gap in the local blogosphere is on the Labour side of the political debate, perhaps mirroring their declining force at the ballot box. Former councillor Richard MacKenzie seems only to have had enough lead in his digital pencil for six (count 'em) posts, while Reading List understands Whitley-based Andy Peacock has deleted his campaigning blog while he seeks selection as a Labour candidate for the General Election (update: he has since turned up in Slough).

All of which leaves a less-balanced collection of blogs, although this may indeed be just a reflection of the varying state of opinion within Berkshire.

In total Reading List records 9 Conservative bloggers, 8 Liberal Democrat, 5 Green Party, 2 Libertarian, 1 Liberty & Solidarity Party, 1 Common Sense Party and 1 Independent blogger in addition to the 4 'celebrity', 4 'comedy' and other unaffiliated, non-partisan sites. Reading List also claims two national journalist sites which fit the description of a blog.

Oranjepan asks:
If you are full of opinion and want to express how you feel, why not start blogging yourself?

Just don't forget to let us know so we can add you to our Reading List!