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For the first few weeks of the semester, we will be studying the weblog as a new form of publishing. While it is easy to read weblog theory, browse some weblogs, and learn about the technology, it is much more difficult actually to develop one. Therefore, your first project will be to develop and maintain a weblog on a topic of your choosing over the course of the semester. (Click here to read more about blogging and check out this Blog FAQ )
Requirements for the Weblog— As you consider how you will proceed with the development of this weblog project, you should take a few points into consideration. As we have read, the best weblogs are both well-written and linkdriven. This means that:
- Your weblog should largely consist of entries that provide interesting links to articles, stories, websites, or other spots on the web, with commentary.
- Your weblog should be frequently updated.
- You should also see this weblog as a unique rhetorical situation, which demands that you approach this project using rhetorical concepts such as audience, purpose, ethos, voice, logos, etc.
- Project Components—
- A "project proposal" sent to me outlining your proposed weblog, its rhetorical purpose, and your maintenance plan for the semester. Be sure to fully address the following questions, as well as any other relevant information:
- Explain the topic or theme of the weblog. What is the rhetorical purpose of this weblog?
- How will you seek to establish ethos in this weblog?
- What kinds of people do you think will be interested in your weblog? What are their demographics? In short, what do you know about your potential audience?
- What other weblogs would you compare to your weblog and why?
- Due: 9/7
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- The weblog itself, maintained and updated on a regular basis (approx 150 - 250 word a minium of 1-2 times per week) as well as visits to at least 3 blogs of class colleagues during the week, and blog them: that is, write about their blogs on your blog. Due weekly on Saturday beginning 9/18
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- Evaluation— The weblog project is worth 15% of your final course grade. You must complete all of the components of the project in a timely manner in order to receive credit for the project. I will evaluate your work according to the following criteria:
- Fully addressing the questions listed under the project proposal memo
- Complete discussion of the rhetorical aspects of the project, including providing sound reasons for your rhetorical choices
- Grammar and mechanics Since the weblog is a public document, I reserve the right to consult outside readers who are interested in your weblog on their opinions. I will not ask them to evaluate you for a grade, but I will ask for advice about how they feel, as a readership of your weblog, about your writing.
- Additionally, I will evaluate the weblog according to the following criteria:
- Effective layout and format for the weblog, which includes a title, description, links to other weblogs, archives
- Posting of unique links from a variety of sources
- Appropriateness to the weblog topic and timeliness of links
- Effective commentary on those links, which means a clear explanation of why you are linking and what the reader is supposed to get out of the link
- Development of a unique voice and perspective
- Timeliness of updates
- Audience awareness
Responsibility for Words
There's an old saying on the net: You own your own words.
Your writing for this class will be published and accessible to the world as soon as you place it on line. In any university course, you are legally and ethically responsible for your own words (slanderous and libelous writing, writing in violation of copyright, and plagiarism, are not proteced by academic freedom). In the same way, you are legally responsible for what you write in this course. Publish something slanderous, or plagiarizing someone and you could get an email from a lawyer.
Why We Use Blogger
The choices of tools for blogging are growing rapidly. They range from dedicated online sites (such as Blogger) to server based scripts and software (such as Movable Type) and from free (with and without ads) to reasonably priced. They all have their advantages and disadvantages. Based on recommendations for its ease of use, I've decided we'll use Blogger for this project. Blogging is as new to me as it appears to be to many of you, so we'll work through any glitches together.
