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The Ultimate Authority on the Status of Blogging

posted on March 27, 2007


Yes, folks, the ultimate authority on the status of blogging weighed in today. Unfortunately, they did not side with the bloggers.

The Lithuanian Parliament decided that bloggers do not meet its definition of journalists. The reasoning, as reported by Agence France-Presse (via Breitbart):

The Media Law describes a journalist as a person who collects, disseminates and provides information to the media, based on a contract with the media, or who is a member of a journalists’ union[.]

Perhaps in Lithuania, “serious journalists” don’t turn to blogs and bloggers as sources.

What do you think it takes to join a Lithuanian journalists’ union? Just a guess, but I think it would be easier for the blogger whom they ruled against to do that than get a contract with “the media.”

Man, journalists everywhere must be taking this as the serious coup that it is… ;)


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  • http://www.fusability.com Greg Scowen

    I wonder if that means membership of a journalist union would be enough to start going to expos, fairs, and conferences on a free media pass?

    The mind starts to stir…

  • http://searchenginetigers.com Simon Heseltine

    So Greg, the next question is, how many expos, fairs and conferences that you’d want to go to are held in Lithuania? ;)

  • http://www.fusability.com Greg Scowen

    Well, there is always Infobalt which is on in October in Vilnius. It is a really nice city and should be an interesting expo…

    Seriously though, I was thinking more on a global scale.

    It gets me thinking though Simon… and Jordan: Are we suggesting that Lithuania is unimportant on a global scale? It is in the EU after all, and an attitude of “we are so much more worthy than you” is what causes many Europeans to resent the strength of the US.

    It is also humbling for me to remember that NZ and Lithuania are similarly populated. We are also real small fry here on a global scale. Sometimes it ain’t any fun being the little guy.

  • Jordan McCollum

    Really? I definitely think of NZ as more populous than Lithuania. Maybe I’m counting sheep. Does Lithuania have many sheep? ;)

    The article I read actually does make the point that this is more important than it would be otherwise since Lithuania did just join the EU.

    On the other hand, if it were an EU-wide decision, that would carry quite a bit more weight.

    It’s hard to give the Baltic states (and other Eastern European entities) the same weight as countries like the US and New Zealand, especially on this issue, because of a tumultuous history and decades of communist rule.

    It’s probably important to note, however, that because of these factors, I’m sure they have a very different definition of freedom of the press than the US does (with two centuries’ precedent and a written Constitution to protect that right).

  • http://www.fusability.com Greg Scowen

    That’s a good response Jordan. Thanks.

    I am not sure of the sheep population of Lithuania either though. Mind you… having so many sheep may not be a good thing. Keep your eyes out for an approaching New Zealand film called ‘Black Sheep’ where the sheep have a taste for human flesh. Looks like a real laugh, and perhaps a scream too.

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