Pundits Find Freedom, and Audiences Through Blogs

By: Dave Astor At least three syndicated creators started blogs this fall -- joining a small but growing group of cartoonists and columnists who have taken that online plunge. Syndicated creators already have a public forum via their newspaper features, so why a blog, too? The reasons are many.

"I'm finding that, creatively, it might be the most fun I've had doing anything," said "Dilbert" creator Scott Adams, who began his blog Oct. 25. The United Media cartoonist explained that composing short blog entries -- containing personal anecdotes, behind-the-scenes stories about how his syndicate edits "Dilbert," and other topics of interest -- is easier than writing a book and less confining than writing a comic strip that has room for only a few words and certain restrictions on what Adams can say.

"There's no one checking my work in the blog, and no limit to what I can write within the confines of PG," said Adams, whose blog can be accessed at Dilbert.com.

Mike Luckovich, who launched a blog Oct. 14, has a forum to offer his opinions as a Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Creators Syndicate. He said one purpose of the new blog (at AJC.com) is to give his readers a forum, too. "I can comment, so why can't they?" noted Luckovich.

The cartoonist added that a blog allows him to bring certain things to the attention of readers. For instance, Luckovich said he was thinking of posting a 1990s cartoon lampooning President Clinton to show that he satirizes politicians in power -- not just Republicans, as some of Luckovich's conservative critics claim.

Akron Beacon Journal/Creators editorial cartoonist Chip Bok said his "Bokbluster" blog, which launched Oct. 11 at his paper's Ohio.com site, has several benefits. "Sometimes readers don't understand my cartoon, and this gives me an opportunity to confuse them more by explaining it in writing," he joked, adding that the blog allows him to link to old cartoons when they apply to a new event, promote his books and appearances, and more.

"My blog and e-mail newsletter established a line of communication with my fans I never had before," said editorial cartoonist Daryl Cagle, of Msnbc.com and the Cagle Cartoons syndicate, who began his blog in 2003.

Editorial cartoonist/columnist Ted Rall also launched his blog in 2003 on the advice of editorial cartoonist Tom Tomorrow, whose blog is at ThisModernWorld.com.

"My more long-winded and involved ideas tend to come out in my weekly column, my shorter and pithier ones in the cartoons," said the Universal Press Syndicate creator. He added that his blog (at Rall.com) is for "blurting things out," mentioning upcoming appearances, etc.

Why did Creators columnist Michelle Malkin start her 18-month-old blog? "Column space is limited," she replied. "I wanted the room to debate critics of my books, publish investigative reports that were too lengthy for my syndicated column, and share pithier items." Malkin said she's found many "new friends, contacts, and sources" via her blog, at MichelleMalkin.com.

Creators columnists Michael Barone (MichaelBarone.com) and Austin Bay (AustinBay.net) also have blogs.

Perhaps the highest-profile blog connected with a syndicated writer is Huffington Post.com, which offers entries by Tribune Media Services columnist Arianna Huffington and scores of others from the worlds of publishing, politics, and entertainment.

Some have mixed feelings about blogs.

"I don't like to share personal information, and I'm not that chatty," said Luckovich, adding that he's lucky to have cartoons to post as "conversation starters."

When asked about blogging negatives, Malkin replied: "Trackback spam. Insomnia." The columnist added that working on a constantly updated blog can be very time-consuming.

"The most successful blogs are updated frequently, because that's the only way readers get hooked and keep coming back for more," said Rall. "It's a lot of work, yet it doesn't pay. When I'm busy with paying work, the blog naturally goes on hold. That annoys would-be readers."

Bok said: "The thing about the Internet is that it's easy for readers to look up all kinds of stuff to tell me why my cartoons are stupid. Then I have to google other stuff in my defense. At first it was kind of fun, but then I realized I wasn't going to bed. Eventually I'll draw one cartoon and spend the rest of my career arguing about it!"

Adams, who does "Dilbert" for 2,000-plus papers, spends two hours a day blogging. He received about 1,000 comments and 166,000 page views during his blog's first eight days. Luckovich's blog generated 2,400-plus comments and 152,000 page views from Oct. 14 to 31. Bringing in 33,000 of those page views was his memorable Oct. 26 cartoon marking the 2,000th American death in Iraq (see story on Page 10). Rall's blog audience is about 120,000, while Malkin gets some 112,000 visits a day.

These visitors get a sense of Malkin's print work. "I can take a syndicated column, blog about it, and add interactive links -- contact info, petitions, etc.," she said. "With readers' help, I turn a passive essay into an actionable item."

Conversely, a blog can help generate print content. The May 2005-launched Huffington Post spawned a twice-weekly package of excerpts Tribune Media began syndicating in September. Cagle (who's at Cagle.Msnbc.com) said blogging led him to start writing columns he distributes to newspapers via his syndicate. "The columns grew entirely out of the blog and are something I would never have considered doing if not for the blog," Cagle observed. "Now I get more response to my columns than to my cartoons."

Malkin said people who do a blog and print feature don't always get the respect they deserve. "The mainstream media often divides the world into bloggers and journalists, which results in us hybrids falling through the cracks," she said. "My column work will sometimes get dismissed because I'm 'just a blogger' and my blog work will be downplayed because I'm a syndicated columnist and not a 'real blogger.'"