. I highly recommend the other links selected this week, particularly the
This post belongs not to the existing legal or linguistic or politics categories, but to a category I am now creating: posts On Blogging.
This self-reflective category turns the mirror on the endeavor itself.
, as a reader and hopefully commenter on this blog (and possibly blogger yourself)?
This first edition of On Blogging (although other earlier posts will also be put in this category, such as my post below about my Blogroll and my very first post) covers a fairly obvious point:
I'm an Anonymous Blogger. Specifically, I'm the Eh Nonymous Blawger, usually signing myself as Eh N. for short.
There are reasons for this, but before I go off and talk about me, let's talk about
Well, I thinks to myself, how about a roundup of what's been said before? Often this kind of post comes about as a blog carnival, with lots of folks people sending in submissions. This here is more of a do-it-yourself carnival:
This is my own roundup of posts relevant to anonymous blogging. It's far from all-inclusive, but it's a start. Feel free to submit your own in the comments or by email, and I'll add them in when I update the post.
One Hand Clapping: "Anonymous blogging won't hold up - expect to be identified if you use a pseudonym." See also the post on Evan's blawg by Lee Walker, below, to the same effect.
Evan (whose blawg is on this list repeatedly, but that's because he covers the right issues the right way, and has guest posters, some of whom are anonymous or pseudonymous) wrote, hilariously, at
Weekly Law school roundup #3:
Not for Sheep Defends Anonymous Big-Firm Lawyers from the Sniping of a Notorious Blawger Writing in defense of the right to remain anonymous, particularly with reference to the authors of the blawg And What Thanks Do We Get?, Katherine of Not for Sheep opines:I do, however, think it is small-minded, petty, and distinctly jealous behavior to attempt to unmask the authors. What, you can't stand someone being more interesting than you for 15 seconds? Give me a break.
Harsh words--and hey, I distinctly think Katherine was referring to me and this post, to which she appended the comment: "This is the snobbiest blawg I've yet seen..."
It goes without saying that I thank Katherine for her constructive criticisms and welcome her back anytime, even before I need her support in the Snobbiest Blawg Competition. I should also point out that in defending the What Thanks authors, who purport to be important law firm partners, her political instincts are impeccable. I, too, did quite well in my day by sucking up to big-firm partners.
Great stuff.
Here is a guest post at Evan's blawg by the anonymous editor of Blawg Review [perhaps I should say Pseudonymous; he signs his posts and comments
Editor 'n' Chef]. He points out that in the Brave New World of blawging, "
Anonymous Lawyer bloggers, who might not even be lawyers yet, can get a book deal from blogging."
Lee Walker's guest post on Evan's blog, which I mentioned above, is called
The Trouble with Anonymous Legal Blogging, and it's quite good. In fact, though, I think Lee is pointing out only some of the troubles with anonablawging, but it's a fascinating post.
Bill Hobbs wrote "Anonymous bloggers often allow cretinous behavior in their comments section." I don't disagree, but I hope I'm an exception.
At Derek Rose's place we find
a post on anonymous comments (Comments as opposed to posts, posters, or blogs)
More quotes:
Dean of Dean's World had a post where an Iraqi blogger wrote, "blogger gave me the chance to stay anonymous and staying safe, I hope." Sobering thought.
Instapundit wrote "plenty of anonymous bloggers manage to be civil, but..." I guess you can complete the rest yourself.
This is a very long and interesting discussion titled "Academic Blogging Babble" by Pharyngula's PZ Myers, who comments that "Anonymous bloggers are doing something very pure" (!)
All good stuff.
Before I go back to talking about Anonymous Me, let's consider a last few other folks.
My favorite anonymous bloggers:- Anonymous Lawyer, who was revealed in a Very Special NYT article as Jeremy Blachman of Jeremy's weblog - always a good way to go. In fact, I plan on going out that way myself, someday.
- Orac Knows aka Respectful Insolence, who self-describes as "semi-anonymous"
- Article III Groupie, the most salacious blawger out there
who at Underneath Their Robes does exactly that, gets underneath the robes of the Article III judges, especially the Supreme Court Justices. A3G is a big fan of the federal bench; also of those who have clerked for it: The Elect, she calls them. A3G is a lawyer on the West Siyyyyde who errs, if she errs at all, on the side of conservatism, and on the side of
fabulousness.
- Coyotelaw's Jeff, who eventually came out on his blawg, identifying himself and revealing himself as a prosecutor.
- The Phantom Professor, written by Elaine Liner. Phantom Prof, unlike Elaine, is still in business: blogging about the Ashleys and the other bad (and good) students and colleagues and teaching experiences at an unnamed (until it became obvious, and they fired her) college.
Dooce's Jen Armstrong is the canonical example of
why one might want to be anonymous; to be "Dooced" is to lose one's job because of one's blogging. (Warning: site contains scatology. That is, she isn't keeping it clean, she writes what's on her mind.)
After reviewing the above, I realize I don't have much to add about why I'm anonymous. [
update: the first commenter, below, implicitly re-raises this question, and so I take it up there.] The reason why I'm a
blogger should be self-evident from this Blawg, but I'll discuss it briefly below, in the section called Why Blog?
As to whether I'm anonymous - well, my pseudonymity hasn't been pierced by a stranger yet (that I know of) but everyone who's ever commented more than once on this blog knows who I am; my family, friends, and many fellow bloggers are in on the secret. I'm about as far as you can get from the super-secret ashamed-blogger who daren't let anyone know about their passion.
I tell total strangers about the blog. Maybe some of them are reading - hey, folks! I'm talking about you!
In fact, people tell me that my blogging style is just like my writing and speaking style - pressured, filled with nonsense, replete with references to law and to language, and otherwise difficult to get a handle on. Mike of Crime & Federalism, for example, told me that from reading the most Dumb-Ass Question contest winning entry, which for once in my life I will forbear linking to (again), he knew it was me. Well, what can I say; writers have characteristic "voices," which can be obscured but in my case seldom is.
Why Blog?
One additional reason to blog, as can be discussed in any good roundup of the subject, is that it provides practice with two things.
1. Making oneself clear
2. Being accountable to an audience.
These are the quintessential needs for a reporter, who must not confuse nor mislead their audience, who will complain if they do. Unfortunately, some reporters fail at one or the other. Many reporters succeed at 1, so much so that they fail to impart any useful information or indeed any intelligent commentary at all. I hope to be clear and yet substantive - sometimes.
Accountability, of course, consists entirely of communication. I'm available to all for free, so I am not at the mercy of the market in the usual sense. I have very little to lose except my self-respect, the respect of others, and of course my job and my life. Please don't deprive me of any those unnecessarily.
But I keep comments fairly open here, expect few problems with comment spam or trackback spam, and encourage you to point out my flaws. If you don't... who will?
That said, keep it clean, keep it respectful, and I encourage you to read my archives, read the blogs in my blogroll and on my Bloglines list (those are the ones I read every time they're updated), and keep involved. Law in general, and law blogging particularly, are far from dull, and I plan to keep throwing interesting things in the mix as often as and long as I am able.
As I indicated above, I want to keep adding links to this entry. Anonymous blogs and bloggers not already mentioned: please drop me a line. Got a favorite anonablawger? Leave a comment, and I'll add it to the list.
