Thursday, August 7, 2008

Putting the BlogHer Dooce / The Bloggess Drama In Perspective

I attended BlogHer08. I attended the closing keynote. I was there for the so-called Dooce v. The Bloggess drama. My claim to fame. I didn't think it was much drama but it has spawned much debate and discussion in the blogosphere. So, what happened? In brief, in this blog, The Bloggess called Dooce a hobbit, and at BlogHer08, Heather aka Dooce mentioned the comment, but not the author, in her keynote address about how she reads every comment, and then Jenny stood up and said "Hey, that was me!" and said some more stuff. And it became THE DRAMATIC moment at the conference.

And I didn't really get it - although I'm not sure I would like being called a hobbit, but I probably would being a sci fi/fantasy geek anyway - because Jenny's post was actually flattering - as in Heather is similar to a being of mythical proportions because of how hugely famous she is. So I wasn't sure why Heather said anything about it, although perhaps it just happened to be the comment that she remembered while she was giving her keynote. And I also didn't get it because Heather was gracious and friendly - she wasn't doing anything more than commenting about how she does indeed read all the comments - the good, the bad, the hateful, the indifferent - so I'm not sure why Jenny said anything at all. And then I obviously didn't understand everything that was said during the keynote, so I missed something, because I didn't think it was the important moment. But it nonetheless became THE DRAMATIC moment. The moment that has been talked about long after the conference.

I read Dooce weekly - I think Heather is funny, touching and raw. And she has been a leader for all of us women bloggers - her success has made it so much easier for the rest of us. Plus, she has succeeded by being herself and succeeded hugely. And I also like Jenny's The Bloggess. To be frank, her blogs are so f-ing funny that I usually end up laughing so hard I snort, and sometimes even tinkle a little. Yes, having given birth vaginally, that happens, despite being a Olympic Kegel-er. In other words, I admire both of them and like their blogs - don't send my hate mail or think I'm being critical - this is just a comment on how stuff gets blown out of proportion.

But, in any event, I was reading the twitter happenings today, and a fellow twitter that I follow, twittered "Who is Heather? What drama?" And then a bit later, the same twitterer - "Heather, she has ten trillion followers - has she been twittering since birth?" And my point - the drama doesn't really mean all that much.