THE STACKED DECK:

Why the Blogosphere is Conservative (Richard Poe, October 4, 2002)

THE LEFTISTS ARE WHINING again. In the'80s, they sniveled, "Why is talk radio right-wing?" In the ?90s, they wept, "Why do conservatives rule the
Internet?" Now a new version of the same old complaint has arisen: "Why are all the blog sites conservative?"

The answer to all three questions is the same. Talk radio, webzines, list servers, message boards and now blog sites have one thing in common. They are interactive. They let people talk back. Consequently, it is physically impossible for new media to do what old media did - that is, to shove unpopular ideas down peoples' throats and pretend that the audience likes it.

Such tactics simply don't work in the blogosphere.

When people get a chance to speak without censorship, they say things you would never hear on CNN or NBC. They vent their contempt for the Left, and express their resentment of Big Media for pushing leftist ideas.

You don't suppose it's simply a function of demographics do you? If the average person on-line remains a fairly affluent single white male technocrat why should we be surprised that they are conservative/libertarian? Similarly, talk radio leans Right because you have a bunch of white male salesman types driving around in their cars with the radio on. Posted by Orrin Judd at October 6, 2002 6:23 AM