Blogging has undergone tremendous growth in the past few years, with the number of South African blogs jumping from 4 941 at the end of 2006, to 25 136 less than a year later, according to World Wide Worx figures.
While offering a new medium for expression, opinion, and debate, the blogosphere is affected by the same issues as traditional media. These include freedom of speech, the divulging of sensitive information and privacy, especially when bloggers are high-profile individuals.
Various South African radio DJs and musicians keep blogs on station Web sites or MySpace profiles, and while some are merely embroidered gig guides, others describe personal experiences in detail.
Jacaranda 94.2 radio host Tov'e Kane has a popular blog, Talk to Tov'e, on the station's Web site, where she shares everything from diet challenges to emotional struggles.
The more public and influential a person is, the more they should be circumspect about what they publish online, simply because the effect of a misstatement could be more immediate and profound.
Paul Jacobson, Web and digital media lawyer
She found blogging offers scope and accessibility not always possible with other media, given that anyone with Internet access, anywhere in world, can view a blogger's whole history of posts.
“I often get comments on Facebook from people who've never even heard me on air - saying how much they can relate to what I've described in a blog that day or even months before,” says Kane.
She adds, however, that being a public figure inevitably involves treading the line between sharing experiences and sacrificing privacy. “I've always tried to give my audiences the access I would have valued from someone I admired. It has landed me in hot water sometimes, and I've had several frightening experiences with stalkers who have become life-threatening.”
Nicholas Haralambous, Gauteng GM of online social media community Zoopy.com, says high-profile bloggers do stand the risk of increased exposure. But he adds that people using networking platforms like Facebook and Twitter are generally sceptical when it comes to believing everything they read online.
“Many of these services are also fiercely protective over celebrity accounts...I know that a service like Twitter will verify almost every celebrity if they are asked to do so by users. So there are safeguards.”
Local musician Chris Chameleon, who blogs regularly on his Web site, chrischameleon.com, says he's not worried about having his privacy invaded. “Ultimately I get to choose what I say; it's my responsibility.”
The great pretenders
There have also been cases where high-profile individuals have been impersonated, such as radio DJ Alex Jay, who had a fake Facebook profile created under his name. While some bogus profiles are clearly satirical, others can be both remarkably convincing and highly misleading.
Matthew Buckland, GM of publishing, social media and mobile at 24.com, says the danger of celebrities being impersonated or stalked exists on- and offline and comes with the territory. “If it's malicious or undesirable, a person has recourse via the social network or blogging service provider, or failing that, recourse via legal means.”
According to Web and digital media lawyer, Paul Jacobson, the legal action open to people depends on what the impersonator does.
“Social networks like Facebook specifically prohibit this and will terminate an account if they find it is being operated by an impersonator. Outside site governance, the person being impersonated could take the impersonator on for defamation, invasion of privacy and so on.”
It seems even those somewhat removed from the public spotlight face the risk of having their identity abused.
I choose to be 'out there' and I accept that it comes with a 'price', and that price is exposing yourself to those who agree with you, or disagree with you.
Tertia Albertyn, author, So Close blog
Tertia Albertyn, author of the popular blog So Close, says she's had someone impersonate her. “They took my whole life, my photos of my kids and pretended to be me, but with their own name. They invented a fantasy life around my life.”
But Albertyn doubts whether people are any safer offline than online.
“I choose to be 'out there' and I accept that it comes with a 'price', and that price is exposing yourself to those who agree with you, or disagree with you, but not once have I felt like my privacy has been invaded.”
Blogging bites back
According to Kane, who says she has been rebuked privately, professionally and publicly for sharing intimate details of her life, her intention has always been to share experiences that show the connections between people.
“Recently, however, I have learned that my willingness to give to the greater public can be detrimental to me and the people I love,” says Kane. “Reluctantly, I've withdrawn a lot of the detail I used to share.”
In 2007, Llewellyn Kriel, subeditor at Sowetan at the time, became the first person in SA fired for blogging, after writing about his paper's company in a blog on the Thought Leader platform.
Kriel decried the appointment policies at Avusa (formerly Johncom) and how journalistic standards and staff morale were dropping fast. Two weeks later, Kriel's contract was formally terminated.
The incident led to much debate by bloggers and commentators, and highlighted the lack of guiding principles for companies and employees regarding blogging, freedom of speech and corporate policy.
Road map required
Buckland says it's important that companies establish guidelines and policies for employees who write about company or industry-related issues on a blog not sanctioned by the organisation they work for.
“I think companies have a right to protect confidential information, but on the other hand, a blogging employee may also be serving that company by promoting its activities.”
According to Jacobson: “The more public and influential a person is, the more they should be circumspect about what they publish online, simply because the effect of a misstatement could be more immediate and profound.”
As blogging grows in popularity and influence, so too will the need for accepted guidelines around privacy, freedom of expression and sensitive information.
But Haralambous believes concerns around blogging will not become a high priority on their own. “I think that it will become a broader debate around blogs, mobiles and citizen journalism and publishing.
“There might come a point where everything has the potential to be published, viewed, reviewed and used against people. This is when the power of an invasive technology could lead to some very tricky situations,” says Haralambous.
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