Academic blogging: escaping the ivory tower

blog post-it noteThe UC Berkeley alumni magazine California has published an article on academic blogging, with tales of some of the more well-known bloggers of the genre like Brad DeLong, John Holbo, and Dan Drezner.  These bloggers have all used their sites to reach beyond their usual audiences of other academics.

One quote from the story:

When John Holbo, Ph.D. ’99, joined their ranks, he was virtually unknown in academia, having recently received his philosophy doctorate from Berkeley and taken a post as assistant professor at the National University of Singapore. But his distinctive voice at the Crooked Timber blog and then The Valve quickly propelled him to fame among his peers. For Holbo, blogging was a way to open a conversation beyond the ivory tower about his esoteric interests. “Academic blogging is not very pure academics,” he says. “Half the commentators on my blogs are not academics. It feels very healthy that way. Almost everyone who does it seriously does it without mixed motives.”

It’s worth reading for those interested in academic blogging. Also be sure to check out some of the blogs discussed in the story:

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