Hey Chris,

Of COURSE you aren't evil. (And, yes, I am seriously prone to hyperbole.) I just don't agree with not giving press passes to well-read bloggers (sure, you have to draw the line) who also write for online zines. Maybe I'm too quick to write off traditional media, but I'm constantly impressed by the power of the blogosphere. The permanence of the entries (without being locked behind subscription walls) also make for good ongoing online marketing efforts.

If B.L. were to write a series of great posts on the proceedings, others would read it, link to it and the word would spread that BlogOn is the conference to be at. If a newspaper covers the story, they will (most likely) still be talking about blogging like it's new and a trend and some people may read it with interest, but very few will pass that information along.

When I say 'evil', you are right - I don't know enough about the conference to make that assessment (even if by 'evil', I mean I'm suspicious of the intent). I'm just skeptical about a blogging conference that hire traditional PR and (it seems) brush off the real clout behind the subject matter - bloggers themselves.

But, perhaps your audience isn't the blogosphere. Perhaps your audience is corporate america and spreading the word offline. That's a great cause in itself.

The location is great, though. I did write a post about that earlier. And your speakers/moderators? Fabulous.

I wish you the best and I hope to read all about it (online).

Tara

I agree, Tara: the power of the blogosphere is awesome, and we (at Guidewire Group and the DEMO Conference) have been working to leverage that power -- and authority. But, to borrow from Monty Python, traditional media is "not dead yet." And it still holds tremendous sway with the corporate communications people for whom blogging IS a new thing.

The remarkable bit of data lost in the whole "BL didn't get a press pass" bit is that BL WAS invited to become a BlogOn Evangelist, complete with a comp ticket to the conference. She turned us down.

We absolutely believe that bloggers such as BL and others ought to be a part of this discussion. But it IS a different discussion now from the ones that occur among bloggers themselves. And it requires a different approach to reach these new conversants. THAT'S WHY we need to use traditional channels and techniques -- because those work with this audience.

You are right, our addience isn't the blogosphere, it's corporate America. I appreciate that you see our intent as "a great cause."