Why join
Booman Tribune? Why cross-post your diaries there? I could say the same thing for other sites, too. Notably, community sites like Maryscott O'Connor's
My Left Wing, or
Dem Bloggers. At first blush, it might seem like Daily Kos is the only place to be. It's got the biggest readership. It has a former President posting, a former Democratic nominee postng, it has sitting Senators and members of the House posting. It has some of the best political analysis anywhere. It is great for catching breaking news. It's orange. I've been a member of Daily Kos for a long time, and I still consider myself a Kossack. I visit the site everyday for all the reasons that make it great and indispensible. But there are good reasons to visit and support some of the smaller online communities.
First, there is the issue of
what online communties do.
Progressive blogs build communities of activists and generate new political activity online. Blogs and online organizations offer forums where people can actively engage in progressive politics - real involvement from people talking about politics, policy, organizing, their lives, etc. The degree to which progressive blogs encourage active engagement in political dialogue has fueled their rapid growth over the past several years.
The single most important difference between the blogospheres is this: the progressive blogosphere is introducing new actors into the political scene. The right-wing blogosphere is facilitating further organization of what was already a fairly coherent political world.
And then there is the issue of the dominance of just a few blogging community's voices.
It is worth emphasizing that the bulk of online traffic in both the conservative and progressive blogospheres goes to a very small number of blogs. According to a recent MyDD study 54.6% of conservative traffic and 69% of progressive traffic went to the top ten blogs representing their respective ideologies.
Clearly, blogging is a world with a handful of haves, and a nearly uncountable number of have-nots. There are likely a few hundred thousand blogs in this country that talk about politics, but less than one-tenth of one percent of them account for more than 99% of all political blogging traffic.
Left-leaning political communities can fill different niches. MyDD is wonkish, My Left Wing is passionate. Booman Tribune is a lot of things: friendly, community oriented, focused on crime and corruption, human rights, women's issues, world events, intelligence, Iraq and Iran, voter fraud, impeachment politics, and pushing a more progressive agenda than that laid out in Crashing the Gates.
Daily Kos advocates for certain strategies and tactics, but those are not the only strategies and tactics worth advocating. The more voices we have, the better. Some people don't feel at home with the wonkishness of MyDD, but we are much better off that MyDD exists and has a voice. Some people don't feel comfortable with the rough and tumble of Daily Kos. They prefer a more measured and respectful environment, or a slower pace where you can take time to craft a comment without it being buried in a 300 comment thread. To each his own. I like all of these environments in different contexts.
So, why hang out at Booman Tribune? Here are some reasons.
Your diary will remain visible on the front-page for a much longer period of time. You may not get as many readers, but you may find that you get a lot more comments, and the comments are more thoughtful, respectful, and constructive than you find here.
You will not find youself in many ratings wars or flamewars because the only rule at BT is "don't be a prick." The members are almost unfailingly polite. If you prefer to discuss the issues calmly, you might like a trip to the tranquility of the Frog Pond.
If you are living outside the United States, you may like our World Recommended Diary feature and our easy linkage to European Tribune. International members have an easier time making the recommended list at Booman Tribune.
There are no diary police. If your diary sucks it will probably just be ignored. If you want to post about movies or jazz or your cats or your children or what you ate for lunch, no one gives a shit.
You can still post two diaries a day.
There is no waiting period to post a comment or a diary.
We have the Froggy Bottom Cafe & Lounge where nothing is off topic and you can get refreshments 24 hours a day.
We have regional threads for action items in your area.
We have the recent comments feature.
Unlike almost all other political web communities, Booman Tribune's membership is about 70% female. This gives it a decidely different flavor, and one that is more representative of the actual makeup of the Democratic Party.
By frequenting other blogging communities, in addition to the Big Orange, you help empower other voices, and help to expand the population of left-leaning citizen activism. After all, Maryscott and I need to eat too.
So, if anyone is interested, you're welcome to come to the Frog Pond and discuss Medicare D(isaster) with Street Kid, or Friday Night Jazz with Knoxville progressive, or Today's Undercovered News (Mostly Women's Issues) with storiesinamerica, or immigration with ManEegee and Xicanopwr, or citizen activism with BostonJoe, or CodePink with DamnitJanet, or delve into the News Bucket with CabinGirl, or Iran and Iraq with Steven D, or Plameology and frogmarching with me. And while your at it, join a few more community blogs and help keep the movement thriving.
Thanks for your indulgence in this shameless pimpage.