Interview with the Bloggers
By Jim Calloway
Director, OBA Management Assistance Program

While doing research for my March Oklahoma Bar Journal article discussing Web logs, "Of Blogs, Bloggers and Blawgs," I decided to get some perspective from some actual bloggers. I picked two bloggers who are at the forefront of this (and other) legal technology trend. But I also picked them because I knew them personally. I originally intended to ask them a few questions and get a few quotes for my article. However, when I received their answers to my questions, I realized that their comments should be passed along to a greater extent than I anticipated and that I had another companion article here.

I should note that they were not aware of each other's answers nor had they read my article when they submitted their answers. I would also note that my article was mostly finished when I received their responses. Some of our observations obviously overlap.

Dennis Kennedy is a well-known St. Louis technology lawyer. He has written and spoken extensively on many aspects of legal technology and the law of technology. He and I teamed up at ABA TECHSHOW™ 2002 for a presentation entitled "Hook ‘em, Land ‘em. Keep ‘em: Practical Marketing Tips." He will be speaking at ABA TECHSHOW™ 2003. His Web site, with an incredible array of both law office technology information and technology law information, is www.denniskennedy.com and his blog is www.denniskennedy.com/blog. 

Tom Mighell is a shareholder with the Dallas law firm of Cowles & Thompson. He publishes the Web log Inter Alia, online at www.inter-alia.net. He also produces the Internet Legal Research Weekly, an e-mail newsletter. He will be speaking on Internet research at the Oklahoma Solo and Small Firm Conference 2003 and will be speaking at ABA TECHSHOW™ 2003 as well.

Q. Why did you become a blogger?

Dennis Kennedy It's a great new medium for short, to-the-point, articles with links. Blogs
are tailor-made for writers, but the real attraction is something known as RSS feeds, which allow you to have an instant audience for your work. Other than that, someone pointed out to me that I had first written about blogs nearly two years ago and wondered why I didn't have one.

Tom Mighell I had wanted to start a legal research Web site for some time, but had neither the time nor the technical expertise necessary to design a website from the ground up. Most Web logging software is pretty user-friendly, allowing you to become a blogger with a minimum of knowledge about the technology. Of course, that's not always a good thing.

Another reason why I started a Web log is that as a blogger you have the opportunity to instantly become part of a larger online community. When you start a Web site you're pretty much on your own as far as publicizing the site, or finding ways to drive traffic to you. With a Web log, you have a ready-made group of fellow bloggers who are just dying to tell other people about your site. The more bloggers who link to your site, the more popular you become, which in turn drives more people to your Web log.

Q. What do you see in the future of blogs, or blawgs?

Dennis Kennedy For certain lawyers, they can become a new and valuable channel for communication to clients and potential clients and they can quickly help a lawyer establish credibility and expertise in a niche area. Blogs are Internet resource tailored to writers and people who like headlines and short coverage of breaking events and developments. They will not replace browsers or the web, but they will capture and be important for certain segments of people, much like instant messaging, chat or newsgroups each have audience segments. The good news is that the likely audience for blogs is an educated, tech-savvy audience who are interested in the written word - a good audience for lawyers.

Tom Mighell That's a two-parter. As for Web logs in general, I see a big push towards mobile blogging, or "moblogging." As technology improves and people can automatically update their Web logs with a web-enabled PDA, you'll see Web loggers become more like journalists, with the ability to instantly publish news on the Internet (add a camera to that PDA and you'll be able to tell the full story!)

For law-related Web logs, or "blawgs," I am really a fan of single-issue blawgs. Sites like the Trademark Blawg and How Appealing take a specific area of law and provide something of specific value to their readers. A Web log on a specific area of practice provides a lawyer with something they are not likely to find anywhere else for free: daily news and case law updates on their particular area of interest.

I also think blawgs can serve a great purpose within large and medium-sized law firms. Here's how it could work; a lawyer in the commercial litigation section of a largish-firm has an interest in Web logs – a Web log could be created on the firm's intranet, allowing that lawyer to post frequent updates on issues of interest to other commercial litigators in the firm. Lawyers could receive daily updates on new commercial lit opinions, evidentiary issues coming up at trial, news about a particular case, or just about anything that might be important to their practice. Some Web logs like these have cropped up here and there, but we're still a long way from them becoming common in law firms.

Q. What are some of your favorite blogs besides your own?

Dennis Kennedy The original blog that I found and followed is the blog of Dave Winer, a blogging pioneer, which is called Scripting News and is definitely worth a look to give you an idea of what a blog is.

There's been an explosion (well, a couple every day, it seems like) of new law-related blogs, sometimes called "blawgs." Ernie the Attorney is the definitive example of a lawyer blog. It's excellent and, if you want to look at a blog to get a feel for what they are about for lawyers, this is the place I would start. One thing I like about blogs is that they give me a good way to keep up with what some of my friends are thinking and doing. For that reason, I like Sabrina Pacifici's BeSpacific blog and Jerry Lawson's Net.Law.Blog - lots of great stuff in both blogs. There are some subject matter blogs that are great - Marty Schwimmer's The Trademark Blog is a great example of this type of blog. For solos and small firms, there's the excellent My Shingle site, although some purists may quibble whether it technically is a blog - the key thing is that it has an RSS feed.

Tom Mighell I currently read 131 Web logs each day – whew! I have a lot of favorites, but some worth mentioning are Ernie the Attorney, Bag and Baggage, LawMeme, and beSpacific. I can't forget Dave Barry – he has a Web log now. He posts every day, and he's hilarious!

Q. Do you have any tips for the blogger wannabee?

Dennis Kennedy
1. It's like 1995 and web pages - if you launch a law blog now, you'll always be considered one of the pioneers.

2. The key to understanding the utility, promise and excitement of blogs is understanding the value of RSS feeds, sometimes referred to as news feeds or channels. Before you think about launching a blog, download a news aggregator, such as Amphetadesk. Amphetadesk is free and simple. Install it and start subscribing to a bunch of channels that interest you and get a feel for how the feeds work. It you see the value, you will get the bug to do your own blog.

3. I would suggest thinking about narrowly defined subject areas, but I suspect that you still have a shot at becoming the first or a premier Oklahoma law blog.

4. Watch to see what is happening out there. Ernie the Attorney keeps a list of law-related blogs and there are other lists as well.

5. I just read Biz Stone's book on blogging called "Blogging - Genius Strategies for Instant Web Content" and would definitely recommend it as a good intro and practical primer.

Tom Mighell
1. Become familiar with the medium. Explore different types of Web logs and see which ones appeal to you. Ernie the Attorney has a terrific list of legal Web logs.

2. Pick the right software. There are a lot of blogging software utilities, and they are designed for every level of technological sophistication. Don't choose a blogging tool that you don't know how to use – you'll get frustrated and your readers will not be amused.

3. Pay your dues. There are over 500,000 Web logs on the Internet, and they have all been doing it longer than you. Learn how to earn the respect of those who came before you, and your success will come in the form of increased traffic to your site.

4. Have fun! One thing you'll notice about Web loggers is that they all have a passion for their subject, whether it's employment law, music, politics, religion, or technology. A Web log gives you a chance to find your voice on a particular issue; if you're not having fun, maybe Web logging is not your thing.