If the Netroots enables ordinary citizens to get around the traditional political, economic, and media gatekeepers, its also true that the denizens of the Blogosphere are so fiercely egalitarian and anti-elitist that they resist delegating any authority, moral or political, to leaders that emerge within the movement. Bloggers that make money are resented. Bloggers that gain fame are mocked. Bloggers that have access are suspicious. Bloggers that are hired onto campaigns or get real paying jobs with health care benefits are accused of selling out. The movement is actually starved of cash. And capital investment is desperately needed to take the movement to the next level, as well as to keep bloggers afloat. Somehow we have to figure out ways to overcome our own instinctive opposition to becoming or supporting new gatekeepers. We should be growing much faster than we are and we should see more people getting trained in the skills they need to seed a new progressive infrastructure. I’d welcome any ideas people have on how to improve the culture of the blogosphere, as well as on how to attract the capital needed for investments in technological improvements. Thoughts?
The Self-Defeating Culture of the Netroots
