{"id":1241,"date":"2025-10-02T04:04:46","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T04:04:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/blogging-for-the-good\/"},"modified":"2025-10-02T04:04:46","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T04:04:46","slug":"blogging-for-the-good","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/blogs\/theory-vs-policy\/blogging-for-the-good\/","title":{"rendered":"Blogging For The Good"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"middle content\">\n<div class=\"column left\" id=\"columnleft\">\n<section class=\"block article author\">\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<h3>About the author<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-content\">\n<div class=\"about-author\">\n<div class=\"tleft\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/files\/var\/broker\/storage\/images\/authors\/hounjet-marieke\/150274-2-eng-gb\/hounjet-marieke_author.jpg\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"tright\">\n<h3><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/authors\/hounjet-marieke\/\">Marieke Hounjet<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"yunu3cvqabft7vifv\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMarieke Hounjet is the Co-ordinator for theConsortium of British Humanitarian Agencies,based in L&#8230;\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/authors\/hounjet-marieke\/\">full profile<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"block article author\">\n<div class=\"headline\">\n<h3>Tags<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<section class=\"content column wide left blog_post content view\" id=\"content\">\n<article class=\"fader\">\n<header class=\"contents\">\n<div class=\"share\">\n\t\t\t<script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n    var addthis_config = {\n        ui_language = 'en'\n    }\n<\/script><\/p>\n<div class=\"addthis sharing\">\n\t<!-- AddThis Button BEGIN --><\/p>\n<div class=\"addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style addthis_32x32_style\" addthis:title=\"Blogging for The Good\">\n\t<a class=\"addthis_button_twitter\" tw:via=\"thebrokeronline\"><\/a><br \/>\n\t<a class=\"addthis_button_facebook\"><\/a><br \/>\n\t<a class=\"addthis_button_pinterest_share\"><\/a><br \/>\n\t<a class=\"addthis_button_preferred_4\"><\/a><br \/>\n\t<a class=\"addthis_button_compact\"><\/a><br \/>\n\t<a class=\"addthis_counter addthis_bubble_style\"><\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n<p>\t<script type=\"text\/javascript\">var addthis_config = data_track_addressbar;<\/script><br \/>\n\t<script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/files\/js\/300\/addthis_widget.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n\t<!-- AddThis Button END -->\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"addthis article_options\">\n\t\t<!-- \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/mandrill\/subscription\/add\/6006\/6081\">Subscribe<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t -->\n<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBlogging for The Good<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<p>\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/authors\/hounjet-marieke\/\">Marieke Hounjet<\/a>\t\t|<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t22 February 2025<br \/>\n\t<\/header>\n<div class=\"body contents\">\n\t<!-- body --><\/p>\n<p class=\"yunu3cvqabft7vifv\">\n<p class=\"yunu3cvqabft7vifv\">As a last blog on the \u2018theory vs policy\u2019 conference I thought it might be appropriate to write about the function of \u2018blogging\u2019 for improving the research and policy interface. This topic was given some serious dedication through a roundtable with well known academic bloggers. In order to wrap up the main thoughts of this debate in the typical blog style &#8211; short and accessible \u2013 I made two lists with the pro\u2019s and \u2018con\u2019s of blogs:<\/p>\n<p class=\"yunu3cvqabft7vifv\">The pro\u2019s:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Policy staff read blogs, even on the senior level. For example, Obama is known to read tweets or blogs of <a href=\"http:\/\/andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com\/the_daily_dish\/bio.html\" target=\"_blank\">A. Sullivan<\/a>. <\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/drezner.foreignpolicy.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Daniel Drezner<\/a> (Tufts University) argued that now academics can blog \u2018without being ridiculed\u2019 or damage their career.<\/li>\n<li>Academics relate to and engage with people outside of academia. As <a href=\"http:\/\/www.hks.harvard.edu\/about\/faculty-staff-directory\/joseph-nye \" target=\"_blank\">Joseph Nye Jr.<\/a> (Harvard University) said there is a strong argument to spend more time as academics to inform the public.<\/li>\n<li>Bloggers themselves feel that it is good practice to write every day and that it enhances one\u2019s career as it leads you to new ideas and research topics.<\/li>\n<li>Blogs have \u2018a premium on clarity and accessibility\u2019. <\/li>\n<li>Blogs could function as good archives for social science research, providing an \u2018academic notebook\u2019 to enrich our understanding of how ideas fit into context.<\/li>\n<li>Academics should in Stephen Walt\u2019s (Harvard University) words \u201cnot want the blogging world to be dominated by people that know less than us\u201d.<\/li>\n<li>Blogs make it more difficult for the academic to pretend that your work stands aloof from the world out there, and therefore provides an incentive to relate to it.<\/li>\n<li>Blogs form a way for academics to retrain themselves in new forms of writing and communication that can reach more people. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"yunu3cvqabft7vifv\">The con\u2019s:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The institutionalisation of blogs has created barriers for new independent bloggers to start blogging.<\/li>\n<li>Blogs can be time constraining. Some bloggers are employed full time to blog and therefore can be time consuming discussion partners.<\/li>\n<li>The hard impact of blogs on policy is very difficult to measure.<\/li>\n<li>There are currently no ethics, norms or principles that guide the blogging world. For example, Walt argued that there should be more transparency with regards to bloggers disclosing who is funding them and for what reasons.<\/li>\n<li>Blogs lack a certain set of standards, especially compared to editorial pieces or peer reviewed journal articles. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"yunu3cvqabft7vifv\">In terms of comparing the evidence presented above there is plenty of room for discussion. Some might find that certain bullet points severely outweigh others, and I would completely agree with such a standpoint. I would also like to point out that the speakers were very positive about blogging and that the constructive criticism (from the con\u2019s list) had the purpose of creating a sphere where it can be addressed. The impact of research on policy is a hard thing to measure in general and blogs do not provide the solution for that. However, a point that I take away from the conference is that many see communication as the key for better interaction between policy-makers and researchers. These interactions are yet to take place on a scale that it can have true impact, and there are understandable barriers in place. One can imagine that a policy maker would have found it difficult to justify visiting a conference for three (working) days. Hence, this is exactly the arena where blogs can make a difference, which for an author of a blog herself is quite a happy note to end on.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"yunu3cvqabft7vifv\">\n<p>\t\t<!-- body -->\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<section class=\"commentform content column wide left\">\n<div class=\"disqus_content\">\n\t\t<a name=\"comments\" id=\"comments\"><\/a><\/p>\n<div id=\"disqus_thread\"><\/div>\n<p>        <script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n            \/* * * CONFIGURATION VARIABLES: EDIT BEFORE PASTING INTO YOUR WEBPAGE * * *\/\n            var disqus_shortname = 'broker'; \/\/ required: replace example with your forum shortname\n            var disqus_identifier = '4718';\n            \/* * * DON'T EDIT BELOW THIS LINE * * *\/\n\t\t\tfunction trackComment(comment)\n            {\n                console.log(comment);\n            }\n\t\t\tfunction disqus_config() {\n                this.callbacks.onNewComment = [function() { \n                console.log(comment);\n                }];\n            }\n\t\t\t(function() {\n                var dsq = document.createElement('script'); dsq.type = 'text\/javascript'; dsq.async = true;\n                dsq.src = '\/\/' + disqus_shortname + 'https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/files\/blogs\/theory-vs-policy\/.disqus.com\/embed.js';\n                (document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0] || document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0]).appendChild(dsq);\n            })();\n        <\/script><br \/>\n        <!--\n        <noscript>Please enable JavaScript to view the <a href=\"http:\/\/disqus.com\/?ref_noscript\">comments powered by Disqus.<\/a><\/noscript>\n        <a href=\"http:\/\/disqus.com\" class=\"dsq-brlink\">comments powered by <span class=\"logo-disqus\">Disqus<\/span><\/a>\n        -->\n    <\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/section><\/div>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n","protected":false,"raw":""},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>About the author Marieke Hounjet Marieke Hounjet is the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template_3.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1241","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Blogging for The Good \/ Theory vs policy \/ Blogs - The Broker<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"As a last blog on the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dctheory vs policy\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 conference I thought it might be appropriate to write about the function of \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcblogging\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 for improving the research and policy interface. This topic was given some serious dedication through a roundtable with well known academic bloggers. In order to wrap up the main thoughts of this debate in the typical blog style - short and accessible \u00e2\u20ac\u201c I made two lists with the pro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s and \u00e2\u20ac\u02dccon\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s of blogs:The pro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s:Policy staff read blogs, even on the senior level....\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/blogs\/theory-vs-policy\/blogging-for-the-good\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Blogging for The Good \/ Theory vs policy \/ Blogs - The Broker\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As a last blog on the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dctheory vs policy\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 conference I thought it might be appropriate to write about the function of \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcblogging\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 for improving the research and policy interface. 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This topic was given some serious dedication through a roundtable with well known academic bloggers. In order to wrap up the main thoughts of this debate in the typical blog style - short and accessible \u00e2\u20ac\u201c I made two lists with the pro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s and \u00e2\u20ac\u02dccon\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s of blogs:The pro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s:Policy staff read blogs, even on the senior level....","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.thebrokeronline.eu\/blogs\/theory-vs-policy\/blogging-for-the-good\/","og_type":"article","og_title":"Blogging for The Good \/ Theory vs policy \/ Blogs - The Broker","og_description":"As a last blog on the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dctheory vs policy\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 conference I thought it might be appropriate to write about the function of \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcblogging\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 for improving the research and policy interface. 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