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Matthew Freeman is a Brooklyn based playwright with a BFA from Emerson College. His plays include THE DEATH OF KING ARTHUR, REASONS FOR MOVING, THE GREAT ESCAPE, THE AMERICANS, THE WHITE SWALLOW, AN INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR, THE MOST WONDERFUL LOVE, WHEN IS A CLOCK, GLEE CLUB, THAT OLD SOFT SHOE and BRANDYWINE DISTILLERY FIRE. He served as Assistant Producer and Senior Writer for the live webcast from Times Square on New Year's Eve 2010-2012. As a freelance writer, he has contributed to Gamespy, Premiere, Complex Magazine, Maxim Online, and MTV Magazine. His plays have been published by Playscripts, Inc., New York Theatre Experience, and Samuel French.

Monday, October 02, 2006

Blogging Panel - Prelude 06

Quite a bit of chatter around the 'sphere from those gents who were involved with a panel on theatre blogging. Much ado about what blogs are, their relationship to the New York Times, their relationship to editorials, and their potential. Worthy reading. Apparently there's an MP3 of it on the way, so I'll keep a look out for that and post it when it appears. In the meantime, check it out...

Garrett Eisler
David Cote
George Hunka
Isaac Butler
Tweed and Sharkskin Girl (previously unbeknownst to moi)

I didn't attend, but I'm looking forward to hearing more. I'm ambivalent about this, honestly. There are some of us that would like blogging to become another acknowledged place for journalism and opinion. Fair enough. Those things have value. I, personally, would love to provide those interested with insight into what it's like to do the sorts of things I do, and get a ground level look at the Indie scene in New York, and obviously whoever wants my opinion will likely hear it in this space. Those with higher ambitions for blogging are out there... and more power to them.

I get a little nervous about the accountability factor, though. Then again, Wikipedia works because it's a healthy, trusting, self-monitoring community. Perhaps oversight is built in to a system with enough different personalities.

We shall see.

One a side note: Interesting to think of Alexis Soloski of the Village Voice as representing the traditional media in any way, but there you have it... paper and an editor is apparently all you need to be considered traditional media these days.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm glad you mentioned this. Because I feel the same way. I'm not as particularly interested in using my space as a journalistic tool all the time. On occasiona yes. But blogs do not NECESSARILY need to do that to be a worthwhile endeavor. But there is certainly a very important place for that, as we have seen.

What I worry about is that in the past 6-8 months the theatre blogosphere has been so geared towards journalism that there is less and less commenting, discussion, and overall interactivity. Which troubles me. The conversation element is so important. I would like to keep that alive...

Freeman said...

There is certainly some level at which blogs are an alternative media source. But more than that, they are a filter for a great number of alternative media sources. The Daily Kos doesn't report his own news...he interprets and disseminates information from a variety of sources according to a particular political perspective.

I do see less, overall, back and forth in the commentary. Some of that is the gunshy nature of what has happened before... that blogging is actually still a small circle and spirited debate quickly devolves into spirited insult. So the alternative (which is a journalism/commentary role that provides an offshoot to the mainstream) is more dry, more immediately useful, but also, on some level, a quiet watchdog more than a unique voice unto itself.

Scott Walters said...

Good points, Matt and MattJ. I do sense a different tone, and a certain caution regarding discussion. To the extent that I am responsible for that, I am quite sorry.