I wrote a post on how race and freedom of speech are intertwined. It was inspired by drama I had on twitter with a pr person and online "friend". The whole ordeal was very upsetting.What was all the anger for? Was this really because I asked people to unfollow me? What interest do pr people have in my tweets if it's not about their client or product? It was clear I was separating personal and pr related identities to make things easier for me and the pr people. Was that really something to become offended about or to start a twitter fight over?
Thinking about it...maybe. At the heart of the argument is right. Who has the right to do and say whatever. From their side I didn't have the right to do what I said or asked them. They felt the need to tell me what I should do...
Huh, well no one has the right to tell me how to live online or offline. More so when it comes to MY blog and the things I want to talk about...either you get it or you don't. I don't write for the masses of society. On twitter the pr person, unprofessionally, went on and on threating to tell all her friends about me and my racist views. Never mind she was saying some shady things also. Then she wrote a "mommy blogger" shouldn't act like that. Problem is she didn't realize while some people label me a "mommy blogger" I'm not one really.
I don't make a living or have contract deals because of my blog. My blog is not my business. What my blog is...is my brand and community identity. When I started years ago it was just me...no pr people, no online friends, no one else. I started blogging to give a voice for my community, not to become a famous "mom blogger"
It's interesting that the same online friend who is now sadden by my outspokenness, was the one who encouraged me into the "mom bloggers" world because she liked what I had to say. Seems becoming famous has a way of changing a person
I do not have the fear of losing my brand because I had a disagreement with a pr person or famous online friend. No pr person/famous mom blogger can take away who I am. What I fear losing is my voice, and my ability to be the voice for my community, because I'm trying to be "pr friendly".
There's value in who I am, what I have to say and what I can do. But it's not for everyone nor was it meant to be. It remains to be seem if the "pr media & mom blogging" community will respect my freedom of speech and continue to make a place for me.
Like this article? Subscribe to the RSS feed or for email updates!
2 comments:
at: January 17, 2010 at 7:18 AM said...
I enjoyed this post. I think the key point, which you've so eloquently made, is that this is your blog and these are your heartfelt thoughts. While it's certainly fun to work with PR companies, go to events here and there, etc.... if all of those things were to go away tomorrow, you would still feel good about your blog, knowing that you stayed true to your original purpose in creating it. On the other hand, if you were to bite your tongue in order to do the "right" thing politically, you likely wouldn't feel as good about yourself or your blog. And really, where's the joy in that - trips, freebies, and all?
at: January 17, 2010 at 7:39 AM said...
Exactly, am I blogging to share my voice or to get a free t-shirt?! LOL. Thank you for commenting. :)
Post a Comment