Blogs

A blog, as defined by Wikipedia, is “a Web-based publication consisting primarily of periodic articles,” usually in reverse chronological order. Why would anyone make a blog? In truth, blogs serve a number of purposes. For writers, they can be simple online diaries that give you focus, “a dumping ground for discoveries, and a vehicle for clarifying your thoughts” (One-Trick Pony), or they can help information-gatherers collect, organize and retain interesting information (Cary Doctorow, of the hugely popular BoingBoing). Sometimes blogs serve as tools for socializing (e.g., MySpace or Friendster).

Law blogs, often referred to as “blawgs,” can serve both as marketing tools for the writer and incredibly useful collections of information for readers. For example, SCOTUSBlog and How Appealing are heavily relied on by appellate lawyers, to the extent that they are now included in the eighteenth edition of the Bluebook. Howard Bashman, author of "How Appealing," regularly posts about the conferences he is invited to speak at in his role as blawger, while Goldstein & Howe brings a lot of eyes to its logo at SCOTUSBlog. Other blawgs provide discussion forums for legal intellectuals—see, for example, PrawfsBlawg (young law professors); Conglomerate (business law professors); or the new official blog of the University of Chicago law faculty. For sheer entertainment value, no blawger is better than the anonymous Article III Groupie of Underneath Their Robes—a kind of People Magazine for the federal judiciary.

To find other blogs, you can try search engines Icerocket or Google, which will help you find postings of interest. Want to see what others are reading? Technorati maintains a “Top 100” blogs list, and The Truth Laid Bear tracks blog postings on “hot topics” with links to the most recent and most popular articles. For recent headlines on selected blawgs, see Juris Novus. And if you’re ready to start your own blog, there’s a blog for that.