Blogs!

At the end of the 92nd Street Y's panel on new Jewish media, someone from the Y announced that while the Cossacks weren't coming, the Y guards would be, since the event had run over its time. This--in reference to a mention earlier in the talk of how happily Cossack-free we are in contemporary America--was unfortunately one of the more clever pronouncements of the evening, most of which involved a discussion of whether blogs are the future of Jewish journalism. A couple thoughts:

1) It is still unclear how the blog versus newspaper discussion is in any way different in a Jewish context than a secular one. My sense is, it's not. I would have much preferred if, once assembled, these 'new' journalists had been able to discuss various contentious issues affecting Jews today--Zionism, intermarriage, which vegetables are, it turns out, not kosher, etc.

2) This is now the second talk I've been to recently where the male panelists dominated the show. It's like everything experts say when advocating all-girls schooling. The men on the panel spoke with utter and perhaps exaggerated confidence about their importance to the wide world of New York-based Jewish journalism, while the women, all of whom represent respected and interesting publications, were mostly silent. Blame society! And, time for a panel of Jewish women bloggers, hint hint...

3) "Are you blogging about a blogging event?" -Jo, who seems to find that amusing.