Study: Journalists Use Blogs Heavily

A study reveals that “51% of journalists consult blogs for story ideas while 28% of them relied on blogs to provide them with day-to-day information,” numbers that are well above-average for blog usage by the general population.

My own experience on this front may be revealing. I’ve been called about a dozen times by reporters who found me because of my blog posts on a topic related to their story. And, about a half-dozen times, reporters have “quoted” me by lifting statements from my blog without speaking with me or confirming the quote. I don’t mind this but, given the number of spoof blogs (like the fake Harriett Miers blog), I’d like to think that reporters would be reluctant to pull content off the Internet without validation.