Disappearing off the British left blog radar
In 2006 this blog was ranked 10th best left-of-centre blog in the UK in Iain Dale’s blog list (2006 and 2007 scores here, 2008 here). Last year it was 40th, and this year it’s in 100th position, despite me investing at least as much time writing the blog now as I have done in previous years. Chances are the blog will not be anywhere to be found on the lists in 2009, and if my own blog is not up to much then will I be asked to write for Dale’s guide? OK, I don’t write uniquely about Labour matters on this blog, and there are plenty of tech and EU matters on the blog as well, but am I really doing that badly?
I decided not to vote in Dale’s poll because frankly I don’t read 10 blogs, let alone 10 for each of his categories. And there was no euroblog category in any case.
For every list, there is another one saying the contrary… 😀 That is the main idea of a list.
It is no reflection on the quality of your blog, Jon. I agree with Nosemonkey. I reckon the British left is becoming less interested in “foreign affairs”, although I am not convinced that what happens in Brussels is really foreign, given that it directly concerns so much of British law.
Why don’t you start a list of Best Euroblogs?
I wouldn’t take Dale’s list overly seriously, if I were you. British blogland’s an incestuous place at the best of times – those of us who focus more on foreign affairs rarely get noticed, and those of us who focus on EU affairs while occasionally saying nice things about Brussels are hardly likely to appeal to the readers of Dale’s blog, let’s face it.
(And as much as he may insist that it’s not just readers of his blog who voted, it’s fairly clear that it was LARGELY readers of his blog and blogs like his – and what do Tories / right-wingers know about what makes for a good left-wing blog? Hell, they know so little they had ME classified as a lefty…)