public writing

Passive, Modern, Accurate, Superficial, and Media-driven are all keywords that describe this cartoon and what it represents for public writing in today's society. Public writing has become increasingly popular over the past few years because of all the resources that the internet has to offer: Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Blogger, and the list goes on and on. With all these various social networking sites it has become possible for anyone to engage in public writing, by being both the writer and/or a follower of someone else's writing. I found this particular cartoon to be representative of public writing because blogging is an extremely common form of expression and a way for people to have their views and opinions shared with others. This cartoon portrays blogging as a somewhat passive and almost superficial form of public writing because it states that the blog was "actually read 3 times," meaning people might not take it as seriously because literally anyone is capable of blogging; perhaps it takes away some of the novelty of public writing. This cartoon is also suggesting that people are more interested in "tweeting" or simply commenting on writing, rather than actually engaging in the piece by reading it. I think blogging is a great way for people to practice public writing, but for comedic purposes, this cartoon is definitely accurate.

When I searched "public sphere" I came across this website, which seems like a very helpful resource when trying to understand the meaning of public sphere. It provides the definition of public sphere, the history of the public sphere, and also benefits, as well as drawbacks, to participating in a public sphere. This site essentially believes that a public sphere is a network for communicating information and sharing opinions and views, which is what public writing entails. In order to have a successful public sphere people have to be open minded and willing to listen to one another.