LATimes reports today on outspoken Philly-based blogger Wayne Bennett, who, in the words of George Carlin, “happens to be black,” (link:extremely NSFW) but also happens to represent some long-overdue catching up:The last few months have been heady ones for black bloggers. Their numbers, while impossible to count accurately, appear to be growing as African Americans catch up with the general population in terms of Internet usage. This year, the Black Weblog Awards — a 3-year-old, independent contest run by an Atlanta-based blogger — received more than 7,000 entries, up from 3,000 in 2005. In that same time, the percentage of black adults with a home broadband connection nearly tripled to 40%, according to a July report by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.
Worth a read. And some thought re: how communities grow online, virtual place-making, discourse, the role of opinions in national media, the specific definition of “national media,” et cetera.
Related:
—Black Weblog Awards
—Field Negro