Tulsa Topics

Sometimes I get completely wrapped up in local events.... so much, that I forget there's a bigger world out there just waiting to be explored. Citizen Journalism isn't a new concept, but the methods and means used today are a far cry from using copy machine cut and paste magic of yesteryear.

Blogs, love them or hate them, have changed how the world looks at traditional news sources. They fill a void. Whether it's picking up where the MSM (Mainstream Media) has left off, or going where the MSM doesn't deem important enough to tread, blogs have impacted news hungry readers.

Now imagine you are a blogger smack dab in the middle of Beirut--

2006-07-18 15:22

Oh my God. This HUGE helicopter just passed my window. And it's not Lebanese.

2006-07-16 06:26

The night was busy. I slept well because I just rolled over and went back to sleep after each blast, but they just didn't stop. I wonder what they're still bombing in Haret Hreik - surely there's nothing left by now? L'Orient doesn't come out on Sundays and Naharnet is not updated, so I don't know what's going on.

Mana is in her mid-20s and lives with her parents in an apartment near the city center of Beirut. She's been blogging about the Israel-Lebanon conflict since it began more than a week ago, and her posts, such as the one above, have turned her LiveJournal account into a gathering point for vibrant and surprisingly conciliatory discussions by both Lebanese and Israelis.

NOTE: Blog Link - http://cedarseed.livejournal.com/

Reached by phone Wednesday, Mana said that the internet has been an incredible tool to help all Lebanese communicate with each other, but more importantly, it has allowed dialogue with people on the other side of the battlefield in the middle of the conflict. (Fearful of reprisals, she spoke to Wired News only on condition of anonymity.)

"We have opportunities of directly talking to the person on the other side and figuring out what they want," she said. "I get a lot of questions like: 'Why didn't your government kick out Hezbollah? Why didn't your army stop them?' Now people get a chance to find out.

"What surprised me the most is what I found out from my Israeli readers that they're aware that all Lebanese don't support Hezbollah. I thought they really believe that we all hate (Israel)."

Recent government crackdowns on blogging in India and China highlight the destabilizing power of the medium; even in the United States, blogging has become nearly synonymous with partisanship and attack politics. Many Beirut bloggers, by contrast, point to the power of blogs as a tool for communication and even reconciliation.

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I think I'll be saying a few prayers for Israel, Lebanon, and the multitudes on innocent civilians that will be adversely affected.