A pair of interesting quotes about blogging in Japan from the Washington Post:
By some estimates, as much as 40 percent of Japanese blogging is done on mobile phones, often by commuters staring cross-eyed at tiny screens for hours as they ride the world’s most extensive network of subways and commuter trains.
Do I dare beat that dead horse about mobile charges in Canada? Naaaah… not today.
Also of interest:
Blogging in Japan, though, is a far tamer beast than in the United States and the rest of the English-speaking world. Japan’s conformist culture has embraced a technology that Americans often use for abrasive self-promotion and refashioned it as a soothingly nonconfrontational medium for getting along.
I was having a conversation with Jason the other day about how we wished that blogging today felt like it did when we first started; how the barrier to building relationships and community was much lower than it seems today. In this rush to monetize our content and build notoriety, the things that I loved about blogging - finding friends, allies, and like-minded (or dislike-minded but amiable) souls seem harder to find. Maybe its’ still there and I’m just blind to it. I just miss the days before the A-list, SEO, and ad revenues.
