Studying Blogging At Northeastern University

Leigh Taginski writes a post on the Advanced Organizational Communication blog about "blogging as organizational communications." Leigh is writing an essay for Dr. Walter Carl's class at Northeastern University's on organizational communication.

Leigh's essay sought to answer the question, "Why would you study blogging in an organizational communication class? What concepts from organizational communication give you any special insight into blogging?"

Leigh Taginski's essay describes the opportunities and threats that come from blogging within a company. Specifically there is opportunity in blogging,

"In an economy and society where everything seems to be standardized and codified, blogs are a breath of fresh air for organizational communication. No longer is the communication between customers and companies like pulling teeth. No longer is the CEO behind 3 doors of security on the top floor keeping his personality hidden behind fancy memos and generic emails. Blogs are giving customers and employees a voice and companies an ear."

While the threat in blogging is that, "Employees are not always happy with their jobs and a blog to the world on bad practices could mean the end of their reputation."

Leigh Taginski provides a good argument for why the truth, openness and honesty through blogging may provide companies with increased credibility in their dealings with customers and other stakeholders.

I’d say in today's world of the Internet, responding to feedback is vitally important if a company is to maintain credibility, a company's audience and the wider public are able to generate content on the web. That content can be found easily enough through the major search engines. Where once customer feedback might have only affected a few customers, today disaffected customers can influence thousands if not millions of their fellow customers.

Leigh Taginski finishes the essay by demonstrating the power of blogs, and their importance by describing some of the negative consequences that have occurred as a result of blogging.

"Jobs have been lost over blog content and company reputations have been smeared. These important implications prove that this tool is a serious medium that needs to be understood, and studied; but at the very least make people aware that it exists and what it can do."

Leigh ends, the essay by stating, "Blogs offer a space to enrich or hurt an organization’s communication climate and the impacts can no longer be ignored as the age of the blogosphere picks up speed."

It's true I think; blogging is having an impact on companies. I'm often asked about the value of blogging, and this blog interviews bloggers regularly to find examples of sales from corporate blogging or higher search engine rankings. But I think Leigh Taginski's essay provides a lot of insight into the power and value of blogging though its ability to give employees and companies the ability to enter into dialogue and give companies a higher level of transparency.

Posted by johncass at December 20, 2005 10:55 PM

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