I am referring to the new blogs, the articles on the main homepage, newsletters etc.

I would like to see if I stand alone in my views.

Edited to add
http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/parenting/...0n.html?page=-1
This article is what prompted my question.

Some of the blogs are horrendous. There's one where wrong info is given, the blogger never acknowledges comments or corrects herself and her grammar, sentence construction and spelling are to weep for.

Are bloggers paid or is it simply a self promotion gig?

It's most certainly different from the Eb I joined way back in 2002. Most the time I dont read much on the homepage, unless something really catches my eye. So I dont think I can really comment on the articles. I come to EB for one reason, the forums.

I wouldnt call it journalism.

None of it interests me in the slightest, I prefer to just go to the "real" member discussions in the forums.

Lets just say I avoid the home page altogether.

ETA: just read quoted article. Now I remember why I don't bother.

Honestly, I don't take notice of anything but the forums. I read one blog once, didn't appeal.

The article you linked is cringe-worthy. I hope and pray no man ever comes to EB and reads that.

They all seem designed to get people to ark up, instead of providing information.

EB's what?

I followed a link to an EB blog from the Age homepage a couple of weeks ago, and literally cringed it was so poorly written.

Mind you, the Age doesn't appear to have anyone to subedit their MAIN online content, let alone keep on track of subsidiaries like EB. Spelling/typo central!

I think they're boring, most of the time ill-informed, and designed to try and coax us into discussing particular subjects.

EB has what the what now?

That link is not journalism it's barely coherent drivel

What are your views OP?

My opinion as a learned, professional () journalist?

THEY ARE SH!TEOUS!


If I want to read engaging, well written and witty articles about parenting, I go to Babble

I think they're factually incorrect, twee and I don't get who they are trying to appeal to.

I surf through Babble if I want to read parenting journalism

I don't usually read them but linked to one the other day about surrogacy and was really surprised at how bad it was - treating an enormous, complex topic as so much fluff. The breastfeeding one is a shocker. I guess they're just meant to feed people into the forums.

Agree re babble.com!

Ditto.

I agree with every other post before me.

Shades of monkeys and typewriters.

So maybe journalism is too strong a word?

My view is similar to everyone who has responded.

I find the article I linked to pretty disgusting. As an ABA member (and soon to be trainee counsellor) I don't think articles like this are doing any good in promoting breastfeeding.

Comments like this

and this

just seem to wipe away all the hard work of breastfeeding advocates over the years in one foul swoop.

Providing accurate up to date information seems to be a hard task and sometimes one that is put in the too hard basket.

Add to this the SPAM designed as newsletters and I'm starting to get a bit annoyed at the standards.

As for the blogs - I am pretty sure the members know what they want to talk about and I object to be pointed in a particular direction like a discussion group in high school.

Wording a post that poses a question with the words Discuss at the end makes me feel like I am sitting an exam at school.


The thing that drew me to EB when we first started TTC was the information on the home page. While not in depth, it was accurate and easy to read. Now it seems to cater for the lowest denominator in both writing style and information.

Maybe I'm just smarter now?


Off to have a look at Babble and maybe pop back over to Celebreast

every now and then I read them and then I get blood pressure so don't bother for a while.

That article you linked is woeful. Honestly, do they pay these people? Perhaps I should start blogging for a living

I think I am slightly over the poor attempts at humour and sh*t stirring they seem to all have.

The blog you have linked to makes me want to print it out and rip it to shreds!!!!!!!!

What a load of drivel one more reason I don't frequently read them.

Might have to check out the aforementioned sites for some stimulating, well written reading material.

I have been offended on more than one occasion so now ignore them! Some of the colourful pictures are nice though!

Er, no. . .

I never read them, smarmy, self righteous, smug, patronising.

Does EB have a home page? With articles? Someone once mentioned there are ads on here too!

Nothing that a direct link to the forums and IE7Pro won't fix!

I've never read them before but I did waste 60 seconds of my life reading the one you posted.

I'll know never to bother again.

I have EB bookmarked in my favourites and it just takes me straight to the forums, so I skip the homepage altogether, I can't remember the last time I looked at it, and won't bother in the future either.

Wow [comment removed by moderator] He is discraseful on that article and im gald ive never read any more of them

Good to know what he really thinks of something that is natural and beautiful

Point said vent over......

Just embarrassing. Worse than the trashy mags at a doctor's surgery waiting room and about as up to date.

I would prefer to read Ralph or Zoo or the like. At least they are openly mysogynistic.

It is not journalism. Do they pay these bloggers? Who are they thinking this will appeal to?

The guy who wrote the breast feeding article (if it's the same Richie Young) is actually a journalist who reviews video games and writes about movies and other 'popular culture' type stuff.

I understand that he's trying to appeal to men to get their attention and maybe send them on to the forums, but I find the article to be much more fluff and insulting, than actual helpful information.

ETA: Other articles I've read previously seem to be designed to get people's backs up and encourage argument, by providing very little in the way of factual information. So I don't tend to bother reading them any more.

A link from one of the blogs (from The Age) was what helped me discover EB, so I guess it did the job. I read the blogs occasionally if I'm bored but don't really think anything of them. Like a PP said, they are written in that trashy doctors-surgery-mag sort of way.

Yes cringeworthy.

Bloggers are not paid (or at least weren't at the time I was 'accepted'). I was supposed to be a blogger.... Dunno what happened there

I didn't even know there was a home page. All EB emails get sent straight to my spam inbox and after readng that link I'm glad I never read any blogs. I can't believe EB would publish that filth

im laughing so hard- I think your channnelling my mother.

the pamela anderson comments just gag-breats are not just about selling cars and mens pleasure.

I agree with pretty much all that has been said.

I do get really annoyed when I see an interesting looking topic on the side bar, and click on it, only to find it leads to a blog/"article". So the topics must be of interest to me on occasion. but the writing and content of the articles never is (although I tend not to read them, I just click out again).

Makes me wonder if they calculate their popularity by "# of hits". I'd want to know who actually spends more than 2 seconds reading it, as opposed to those of us who end up there by accident and get out again as fast as we can.

Sorry Fairfax/EB/Blog writers.

Reading the above, coupled with the comment from another of the blogs in the "what would you do if your child was gay" thread, the politest description I can afford EB's "journalism" is puerile.

Cringeworthy and just plain awful.

Puerile definitely describes the 'article' linked here. Although it is almost more adolescent than childish.

I actually quite like the 'Mother in Da Hood' blog - although I find it pretty irksome that the title is the exact one I suggested for my own blog (nothing to do with the blogger, have had that discussion with her, and she's perfectly fine), when all these blogs were begun.

Got to admit - I never read anything in EB except for these forums! 95% in the General (and 95% of that in WDYT?) and occ might see something crop up which interests me elsewhere if I click into Todays Active Topics.

I can't say I've ever actually read any journalism from EB per se.

Tamm

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