The Major Differences Between Blogging and Journalism | Comparison | Similarities | Pros & Cons

Usually, people are confused when it comes to choosing between blogging and journalism. Both of them could be great career choices if you are serious about them. We can say, the journalist may be a blogger, but a blogger may not be a journalist.
Blogging vs. Journalism —
It's the ongoing debate we posted here that expose the significant difference between blogging and journalism, how are the blogging and journalism growing? Is blogging considered journalism? Which one is more popular today? What is blogging? What is the impact of blogging on journalism? What is a journalist? What is journalism? Online publisher vs online journalism? Journalist vs reporter? Blog vs news? Difference between a blog and an editorial post? How interactive journalism ethics differ from blogging? Does blogging as a form of journalism now? Blogging vs. traditional journalism? Should bloggers be considered journalists?

With no accountability & no responsibility means bloggers are not journalists, but they need to practice the principles they follow individually.

The bloggers give out the information according to his perspective whereas the journalists do it according to his company. Journalism and blogging hold a great future because we are living in the age of information technology. The information has to be disseminated all around the world as soon as possible. Journalists and bloggers are the ones who disseminate all kinds of information. So it's very important to know how blogging and journalism are similar but at the same time, they are quite different in many ways. In this article, we focus on the differences between these two professions. Check the growth of blogging and how it has affected online journalism now and vice versa.

After the 20 Lessons, I’ve Learned from 10 Years Of Blogging I can tell you that, the blogging is an excellent way to express yourself in a way you think. Creating a blog is one task and spreading it over social media is another. But journalism is a somewhat different kind of thing. A journalist can be a blogger, but not every blogger is a journalist. Let's check out the major differences between blogging and journalism.

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Blurring the line

With the advent of the internet and mushrooming of mainstream media, the line between blogging and journalism has been blurred.

People think both are the same and there is no difference between them.

However, there is a substantial difference between these two.

Now day’s bloggers are also known as citizen journalists. It means that bloggers may not be working for an organization like a journalist, but they do report on certain issues.

Does reporting about certain issues make them a journalist? Should bloggers be considered journalists?

I don’t think so, because there are still fundamental differences between these two professions.

Let us see them.

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Differences Between Blogging and Journalism

Of course, there is a distinction between writing an article for traditional media and writing an article for a blog. Let's identify the fundamental differences between blogging & journalism including their duty & the purpose of the media they are following.

1. Fairness and objectivity.

The most fundamental difference between these two is objectivity.
Journalism is all about objectivity whereas blogging is more personal and can be subjective.

A journalist can’t take sides if he or she is covering a story. Journalists have to give both sides of the picture without carrying an agenda.

However, bloggers don’t have such problems. If they like then they can be neutral; otherwise, they can give a twist to a story.

Fairness and objectivity are the foundations of journalism. Although it is a different matter that today journalism has become a tool for propaganda.

But if you go by the book then objectivity is very important in journalism.

Check out; 15 Tips on How To Become A Blogger?

2. Authenticity of a story.

The second major difference between blogging and journalism is the story both are covering.

There is a burden on a journalist that his or her story must be genuine and he is not making it up.

However, a blogger’s story can be true, but at times they can be just gossip.

The line that divides these two professions is credibility. If a story happens to be false, then the credibility of a journalist is at stake.

On the other hand, there is no consequence for a blogger even if the story or news happens to be false.

Credibility is a line that divides these two professions.

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3. Source of a story.

You do not get a story or news just by sitting in your home wearing pajamas.

You have to go out and lookout for a story. That’s what a journalist is trained to do. He or she goes out in the ground and ascertains more about a story.

Journalists dig deep and try to find every aspect of a story. Sources of a journalist can be anything. They have a network of people where they collect their information from.

However, on the other hand, a blogger just copies a story from mainstream media like TV, newspaper, radio station, etc. and writes it. A blogger just gives a new twist to the same story sitting in his or her home. So they don’t go out in the middle like a journalist.

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4. Relationship with audience.

Both of them have different kinds of relationships with their audience.

A journalist usually works for an organization; it can be print media or electronic media. However, a blogger works for nobody.

He or she is independent and does not reflect the view of an organization.

Therefore this makes their audience quite different.

The audience of a journalist is more serious, and they trust what the journalist is writing. Audiences take the story very seriously.

But the audience of a blogger is very casual, and they don’t take a story seriously. Blogger’s audience is basically people from the Internet.

Nature of the relationship with their readers differs in both professions.

You may also like to read; How To Kick Start a Successful Blog With 7 Simple Steps

5. Medium they use.

This is another very common but important difference between bloggers and journalists.

Their medium of disseminating information is entirely different.

Journalists use print media like Newspaper, Magazines or electronic media like TV, Radio, and the Internet.

For a journalist, the Internet is just one medium out of many others.

However, a blogger he or she has only one medium and that is Internet. A blogger has no presence on TV, Radio or Newspapers.

Medium is very important because still a TV or newspaper is more trusted by people compared to a blog or a news website.

Moreover, a journalist has to be careful with their story or news because they represent the views of their organization. So they are liable for a legal suit.

On the other hand, a blogger can vanish overnight in case of a lawsuit. Journalists Can Be Bloggers But Not Vice Versa.

After reading the above paragraphs, it is quite clear that journalism is a hell of a job whereas blogging is just a casual way of writing.

So it obviously means a journalist can be a blogger, but not every blogger is a journalist.

Blogging can be a training ground for a budding journalist. If you want to become a journalist, then you can start with blogging.

You write about a story online and develop some skills later on you go for a formal course and some on-ground training once you are recruited by an organization.

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Pros and cons being blogger and journalist

If you want to become a blogger or a journalist, then both of them have advantages and disadvantages.

Blogging is all about comfort because you don’t have to go out in the middle. However, journalists have to go in the line of fire and follow a story. Sometimes they have put their lives in danger.

On the other hand, a journalist gets to meet high profile people and establishes contacts. The whole career is very exciting because you can go on to winning the Pulitzer Prize.

While blogging as a career is pretty dull although you do get a chance to make money.

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Similarities between bloggers and journalists

There is only one similarity between blogging and journalisms.

Freedom to Write.

There are many things that differentiate a blogger from a journalist. However, freedom to write unties them.

Journalists and bloggers represent freedom of expression.

Both of them are the fourth pillar of a functioning democracy.

Journalists and bloggers must be free to write anything. They must be free to criticize the incumbent government, head of the state and their policies.

And the government is not going to censor them in any given situation.

Whether it is mainstream media or social media, a journalist and a blogger must be free to write anything.


So this is all you need to know about journalism and blogging.