Blogging for (or near) the Corporation
A while back, I had an email debate with a journalist who had started blogging.
His blog is on his employer’s (a major magazine) site, and is branded with the
magazine’s logo, look and feel. The site itself is not a Web portal–it’s more
or less a corporate site for the magazine.
I was confused as to whether his weblog reflected only his views, or those
of the corporation for which he worked. He argued that it was totally clear
that his views were his own, and not those of the company.
I bring this up because today I happened to look at three
personal weblogs
by Microsoft employees. All three of them contain clear disclaimers at the top
of the page indicating that their views are their own and not those of Microsoft.
If you have a look at weblogs run on the Microsoft site (or other corporate
sites), you’ll find no disclaimers and a far-more-apparent party line.
In short, if you want to speak freely, and want your readers to understand
that you are speaking freely, choose a host independent from your employer.
