Campaign for Tory Johnson to join us in Miami
Question: How can you tell the difference between an aloof MSM personality and a We-Media-spirited personality?
Answer: A real blogger pays attention to trackbacks + takes the time to comment on other people’s blogs!
That’s just what Women for Hire CEO Tory Johnson did yesterday when she responded to my post on her interview with BlogHer co-founder Lisa Stone. First off, Tory corrected some of my errors: She was interviewing Lisa for Home Work, a show she anchors on ABC’s digital channel, ABC News Now, not Good Morning America (though Tory is the workplace consultant for that show.)
Tory also pointed out that she’s a blogger herself: Indeed, Women for Hire’s Be Gutsy blog showcases not only Tory’s writing, but blogging from a whole team of fellow work-minded women and moms.
I hope Tory will accept my apology for these errors and oversights, but I also hope she will allow this: That mainstream-media formats often create an air of inauthenticity. Tory asked Lisa, “So why are women so attracted to blogging?” In other words, she adopted the persona of the everyman-anchorperson. In fact, the exchange sold Tory short: She herself could have contributed some real insights both as a blogger and someone who tracks, among other things, the business opportunities digital media is providing for women.
So Tory, question for you: What medium do you find more authentic? Blogging or broadcasting? Do you see any contradiction between your dual roles as MSM and new media personality? I ask because we’ve seen other broadcast personalities imperfectly straddle this MSM/new-media line.
Finally, an invitation: Tory, come join us in Miami for our We Media conference, and we’ll save a spot for you on our “Women, Media and Technology” panel on Wednesday afternoon, February 27. Susan Mernit, blogger and now-former senior director at Yahoo! Personals, will be leading the conversation with panelists, who now include Mary Hodder, founder of Dabble; Judith Meskill, co-founder of CrowdFusion; Carolyn Washburn, executive editor of The Des Moines Register; and Barbara Kahn, dean of the University of Miami’s School of Business.
The topic will be something Tory knows all about: the girl-power of We Media.
