Editing Blogosphere (section)

==As a social network==
Sites such as [[Technorati]], [[BlogPulse]], and [[Tailrank.com|Tailrank]] track the interconnections between bloggers. Taking advantage of [[hypertext]] links which act as markers for the subjects the bloggers are discussing, these sites can follow a piece of conversation as it moves from blog to blog. These also can help information researchers study how fast a [[Internet meme|meme]] spreads through the blogosphere, to determine which sites are the most important for gaining early recognition.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2007 |title=Investigating the impact of the blogosphere: Using PageRank to determine the distribution of attention |url=http://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/EXPORT/DL/38960.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071127060435/http://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/EXPORT/DL/38960.pdf |archive-date=2007-11-27 |access-date=2025-04-09 |website=www.alexandria.unisg.ch}}</ref> Sites also exist to track specific blogospheres, such as those related by a certain genre, culture, subject matter, or geopolitical location.

===Mapping===
[[File:blogosphere map.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Displays interconnections throughout the all blogs|The blogosphere as a network of interconnections]]
In 2007, following six weeks of observation, social media expert Matthew Hurst mapped the blogosphere, generating the plot to the left based on the interconnections between blogs. The most densely populated areas represent the most active portions of the blogosphere. White dots represent individual blogs. They are sized according to the number of links surrounding that particular blog. Links are plotted in both green and blue, with green representing one-way links and blue representing reciprocal links.<ref name="Discover">{{Cite news |date=2007 |title=Map: Welcome to the Blogosphere |url=http://discovermagazine.com/2007/may/map-welcome-to-the-blogosphere |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20191031220004/http://discovermagazine.com:80/2007/may/map-welcome-to-the-blogosphere |archive-date=2019-10-31 |access-date=2025-04-09 |work=Discover Magazine}}</ref>

''DISCOVER Magazine'' described six major 'hot spots' of the blogosphere. While points 1 and 2 represent influential individual blogs, point 3 is the perfect example of "blogging island", where individual blogs are highly connected within a sub-community but lack many connections to the larger blogosphere. Point 4 describes a sociopolitical blogging niche, in which links demonstrate the constant dialogue between bloggers who write about the same subject of interest. Point 5 is an isolated sub-community of blogs dedicated to the world of pornography. Lastly, point 6 represents a collection of sports' lovers who largely segregate themselves but still manage to link back to the higher traffic blogs toward the center of the blogosphere.<ref name="Discover" />

===Merging with other social networks===
Over time, the blogosphere developed as its own network of interconnections. In this time, bloggers began to engage in other online communities, specifically social networking sites, melding the two realms of social media together.

According to Technorati's 2010 "State of the Blogosphere" report, 78% of bloggers were using the microblogging service Twitter, with much larger percentages of individuals who blogged as a part-time job (88%) or full-time for a specific company (88%). Almost half of all bloggers surveyed used Twitter to interact with the readers of their blog, while 72% of bloggers used it for blog promotion. For bloggers whose blog was their business (self-employed), 63% used Twitter to market their business. Additionally, according to the report, almost 9 out of 10 (87%) bloggers were using Facebook.<ref name="autogenerated1"/>

[[Citizen journalism|News blogs]] have become popular, and have created competition for traditional print newspaper and news magazines. The [[Huffington Post]] was ranked the most powerful blog in the world by ''[[The Observer]]'' in 2008,<ref>{{cite news | title = The world's 50 most powerful blogs | url = https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2008/mar/09/blogs | publisher = Observer | date = 2008-03-09 | access-date = 2008-09-23 | location=London | first=Jessica | last=Aldred}}</ref> and has come to dominate current event reporting.
*[[Political blog]]s are often tied to a large media or news corporation, such as "The Caucus" (affiliated with ''[[The New York Times]]''),  "CNN Political Ticker", and the ''[[National Review]]''{{'}}s "The Corner".
*Gossip blogs have grown extensively with the development of the blogosphere. One of the first influential gossip bloggers was [[Perez Hilton]], a celebrity and entertainment media gossip blogger. His blog posts tabloid photographs of celebrities, accompanied by captions and comments. Web traffic to the often controversial and raunchy Perez Hilton site increased significantly in 2005, prompting similar gossip blogs, such as [[TMZ.com]] to gain popularity.<ref>The designation itself is mentioned in, among others, Gray, Tyler (2006-09-28). "[https://web.archive.org/web/20070209022056/http://www.radaronline.com/features/2006/09/perez_hilton_blogger_baron.php Pop goes Perez: How a pudgy Miami poseur became gossip's new queen]". Radar Online. Retrieved 2007-02-09</ref>
*[[Food blog]]s allow chefs to share recipes, cooking techniques, and [[food porn]]. Food blogs such as 101 Cookbooks, Smitten Kitchen, and Simply Recipes can serve as online cookbooks for followers and often contain restaurant critiques, product reviews, and step-by-step photography for recipes.
*[[Fashion blog]]s have also become large sub-communities following the growth of the blogosphere. blogs like Racked, [[The Cut (fashion blog)|The Cut]], and Fashionista give readers an eye into the fashion industry. Besides fashion news blogs, street style blogs have also become popular. Such bloggers include Scott Schuman (The Sartorialist), Tommy Ton (Jak and Jil), Jane Aldridge (Sea of Shoes),  Bryan Grey-Yambao (Bryanboy), and Tavi Gevinson (Style Rookie). They are able to earn considerable livings through advertising, selling their photos and even providing their services as photographers, stylists, and guest designers.
*[[Health blog]]s cover health topics, events and/or related content of the health industry and the general community. A health blog can cover diverse health related concerns such as nutrition and diet, fitness, weight control, diseases, disease management, societal trends affecting health, analysis about health, business of health and health research.
*[[Scientific blog]]s cover different scientific and mathematical topics. Some of these are written by leading researchers, others by interested laymen. These are often free to access and thus provide an alternative to pay walled scientific literature.
*Genealogy blogs cover a variety of topics related to [[genealogy]] and family history, including the genealogy industry, [[genealogy software]] and technology, as well as educational "how to" posts related to specific research areas.
*Philosophy blogs both in [[analytic philosophy]] and [[Continental philosophy]] are a significant part of the blogosphere, often covering metaphysics, ethics and philosophy of language.