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April 21, 2005
The Joy of Ito
The Blog: Joi Ito's Web
I'm starting here because Joi's blog is the pinnacle of blogs about blogging. I read it and I just start growling about how self-congratulatory and self-referential it is. It almost appears to me that his blog IS his existence rather than the other way around.
I'm not sure of the characters which make up Joi's last name, but one meaning of Ito in Japanese is thread. Even if it doesn't match the actual character of his family name it seems quite appropriate for his activities on the web. It also appears that sometimes he has a backbone made of thread as shown in this post where he discusses being two sided and compromising in his remarks.
I am mixed in rating it. I'd give it 1 star for the recursive nature of the content, but 5 stars for artistic achievement as Joi has managed to write a life for himself. Technically, there is no doubt that he will try any sort of blogging innovation and creates buzz about them so that also rates a 5. I'll settle on an overall score of 4.
On a related note, his sister Mizuko writes some interesting (and less self-absorbed pieces here.
Posted by Jack at April 21, 2005 08:18 AM
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Comments
I guess my blog is a bit self-absorbed. I suppose commenting here that my blog is self-absorbed is even more self-absorbed. My blog is called "Joi Ito's Web"... What do you expect it to be about? Seriously though, my blog started as a diary, then a conversation with my friends, and it sort of grew from there. The primary purpose is for me to talk about what I feel like talking about and a lot of times, I am obsessed with self-refection.
I think that blogs are sufficiently different that when you critic a blog, you should think about the intent of the author/blog and try to read it from that perspective. I am really not interested in being some sort news site or topical blog. I'd rather have fewer readers who are more engaged than a broad audience that uses my blog for some general purpose. I'm not trying to sell anything on my blog and you don't pay to read my blog.
I am not criticizing you for your opinion about my blog, but I would think about it as something I'm writing primarily for my friends. I try to hold back my boastfulness, but just like when you are among friend, you're going to get the occasional "yay me!" and self-absorbed introspective post. Sharing that kind of thing is what friends are for. No? I'm not sure how I feel about having it rated so objectively... but of course, you're free to do what you like.
I mainly decided to post this because it looks like you're going to start reviewing more blogs and hopefully my feedback is helpful, if only to confirm your assertions.
Posted by: Joi Ito at April 21, 2005 04:27 PM
Actually Joi, your comment shows you are courageous and also very genuine. Both are characteristics to be admired. Thanks for the feedback.
Posted by: Jack at April 21, 2005 05:15 PM