Research Communication Using Research Blogs

Writing Style

• Non-Jargon/Accessibility/Definitions
• Methodology (brief in layman's terms)
• Tangible Examples
• Titles & Headings
• Preface (if necessary & room permits)
• Careful use of Graphics
• Differentiation (not personality)
• Driven by Added Value
• Issue Oriented
• Place in context of wider debate

AM I DONE AFTER MY POST?

WHY BLOG?

HOW DO I BLOG?

ANY FURTHER RESOURCES?

A RESEARCH BLOG?

ANY TIPS FOR RESEARCH BLOG POSTS?

WHAT IS A BLOG?

LEARN & EVALUATE

Look

Opportunities

• Gauge Reactions
• Think of how it could be different
• Be open to constructive criticism
• Learn from mistakes
• Keep a record of response and actions

Code of Conduct

• Other blogs
• Actual Blog Site
• User Modeling

Purpose of the Post

Weblog

• A tool for interactive discourse
• A forum to write regularly on a broad range of topics within a research or teaching area
• A teaching tool providing experiential learning for students
• A vehicle for community engagement

An impact log

• Original Research Rationale & Objective
• Original Dissemination Objective
• Affect policy change?
• Debate/discussion between researchers

A proposal by Tim O'Reilly for bloggers to enforce civility on their blogs by being civil themselves and moderating comments on their blog.

O'Reilly and others came up with a list of seven proposed ideas:

• Take responsibility not just for your own words, but for the comments you allow on your blog.
• Label your tolerance level for abusive comments.
• Consider eliminating anonymous comments.
• Ignore the trolls.
• Take the conversation offline, and talk directly, or find an intermediary who can do so.
• If you know someone who is behaving badly, tell them so.
• Don't say anything online that you wouldn't say in person.

Write

= Blog = Informal Journal

This is an informal record that gauges how your communications has been received. The log can comprise stakeholder feedback, a list of references indicating the reach of your communications

• Networking and making connections.

• Extends an institution’s influence by attracting development policymakers and practitioners to engage in a way that is more interactive than websites and e-mail.

• A forum for expert commentary and analysis on development policy issues.

• Demystifies reasearch and makes the case for important policy issues that are not in the spotlight.

• Allows authoritative comment and analysis on under- or un-reported issues can lead journalists or others to follow up and write about it.

• Supplements traditional print and online news.

• Leads to new audiences and collaboration opportunities, such as media requests and commissions (e.g. for op-ed pieces).

• Agenda-Setting & Framing for the media and public.

• Short Length
• Concise Wording
• Relatively Informal

Blogggers = Observers

• informed opinions

Target Audience

Examples

• Researchers
• Journalists/Media
• General Public

Glossary of Blogging

Review

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_blogging

of Blogs from The Guardian's Global Development Blogosphere

Post

Content Sharing form of Social Media

Opinion or Research Brief ?

• Fact Check
• Get Feedback
• Revise

What is the End Action?

• Interactive (generally)
• Different than a Web Forum
• Categories and Tags

• Hosting
• Blogware
• Categorise/Tags
• List in Search Engine

Overseas Development Institute Website (Toolkits)

http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/details.asp?id=5283&title=blog-blogging-opinion

• To read original paper
• Contact author for interview
• Commentary & discussion
• Share blog with others

Communicate

Research to Action Website

http://www.researchtoaction.org/

Types

How does the post relate to larger Communication Strategy?

• Kick it off thru colleague
• Tweet on Twitter
• Share on Facebook
• Check your comments and reply
• Ignore inflammatory remarks aka 'Trolls'

DFID Bloggers – personal experiences & reflections

‘Staff blogs from the UK Department for International Development. Get real life perspectives from those working on the ground to fight poverty and join in the debate.’ http://blogs.dfid.gov.uk/

Overseas Development Institute (ODI)– thought sharing/personal views

ODI experts share their thoughts on key issues in development

‘Their blog features the personal views of ODI experts on a range of current events and issues. http://www.odi.org.uk/opinion/

Global Food for Thought - commentary/analysis

Roger Thurow's blog provides updated information, commentary, and analysis on breaking developments on international agriculture, food and related issues. http://globalfoodforthought.typepad.com/global-food-for-thought/

Development Horizons - personal reflections

‘The Institute of Development Studies' Lawrence Haddad's personal reflections on global development.’ http://www.iied.org/blogs

Center for Global Development - policy repsonse

‘The blog features posts from Nancy Birdsall and her colleagues about innovative, practical policy responses to poverty and inequality in a globalizing world.’ http://blogs.cgdev.org/globaldevelopment/

International Institute for Environment and Development - issue oriented

‘Written by staff and contributors, IIED's blog examines issues related to sustainable development, the green economy, renewable energy, climate change, governance and social justice.’ http://www.iied.org/blogs

• Complements University Mandate:
• Disseminate vital & new knowledge/information
• Global South can’t afford accesss to Research in journals

• Adds to research transparency - Research Excellence Framework (REF)
• A ‘return on the public investment in research’
• from an Intellectual Property perspective

• A wider audience than scholar would normally encounter
• Gets more ‘traffic’ versus peer reviewed journal
• 100 vs 1000 readers

• Complements peer review
• peer review = quality control
• blogging = distribution channel

• A form of ‘peer-to-peer review’
• Test ideas or pre-test thoughts

• Share & Engage
• Learning & Knowledge Acquisition
• Shared Experiences/Shared Learning
• contributors create results

• Helps professional development
• Will increasingly become an important component of a scholar’s profile
• Opportunity to self-publish!
• not everyone gets into a journal

Blog Search Engines

Framing of the Post

Links to Articles

• Personal
• Corporate
• Organizational
• Genre
• Vlog (Video)
• Links (linklog)
• Photoblog
• Tumblelog (mixed-media)
• Microblog (in the moment)

• Technorati: Technorati is a real-time search engine dedicated to the blogosphere. It only searches through blogs to find exactly what you're looking for.
• Google Blog Search: Simple, easy to use with fast delivery of the service.
• LJSeek: LjSeek.com is a search engine dedicated to only sifting through the LiveJournal blogging community.
• Ice Rocket Blog Search: Excellent blog search engine that includes the option to search by link.
• BlogPulse: BlogPulse is a dream of a blog search engine. Includes really cool BlogPulse user tools such as Trend Search and Conversation Tracker.

• Relevance & Implications
• Hook/Lead/Setup
• Problem/Conflict/Resolution
• Who/What/Where/Why/When/How
• Inverted Pyramid
• Imagination & Storytelling
• Three-point Summary

Caveat

The Impact of Blogs: Impact of Economic Blogs...

http://www.researchtoaction.org/working-paper-the-impact-of-economics-blogs-news-views-methods-andinsights-from-the-world-of-impact-evaluation/

The Impact of Blogs Part II: Blogging enhances the blogger’s reputation. But, does it influence policy?

http://www.researchtoaction.org/the-impact-of-blogs-part-ii-blogging-enhances-the-blogger%e2%80%99sreputation-but-does-it-influence-policy/

Unpacking the share and engage mantra for researchers: the case of blogging

http://www.researchtoaction.org/unpacking-the-share-and-engage-mantra-for-researchers-the-case-ofblogging/

To blog or not to blog?

http://www.researchtoaction.org/to-blog-or-not-to-blog/

Don’t swap the “Ivory Tower” for a cyber one: public engagement and the internet

http://www.researchtoaction.org/don%e2%80%99t-swap-the-%e2%80%9civory-tower%e2%80%9d-for-acyber-one-public-engagement-and-the-internet/

Why academics should blog

http://www.researchtoaction.org/why-academics-should-blog/

Academics and universities should embrace blogging as a vital tool of academic communication and impact

http://www.researchtoaction.org/academics-and-universities-should-embrace-blogging-as-a-vital-tool-ofacademic-communication-and-impact-impact-of-social-sciences/

How big is the thing? There are no easy answers to the problem of determining impact but blogging is hereto help

http://www.researchtoaction.org/how-big-is-the-thing-there-are-no-easy-answers-to-the-problem-ofdetermining-impact-but-blogging-is-here-to-help/

Postings by staff are the institution’s liability. However, any personal comment on particular issues (these are encouraged in blogs!) should be prefaced or proceeded by a caveat: ‘What I’m about to write/have just written is entirely my personal view, and is not intended to represent official organisational policy or positions’.

Blogoshphere

Blurring with the mass media

• Collective Community
• Aggregators

• Many bloggers, particularly those engaged in participatory journalism, differentiate themselves from the mainstream media.

• Others are members of the media working through a different channel.

• Some institutions see blogging as a means of 'getting around the filter' and pushing messages directly to the public.

Interactivity

• Links to University
• Link to Actual Research Findings/Paper
• Links to similar works/definitions

Real Simple Syndication (RSS)

• subscribe
• receive blog via email
• quick communication
• News Reader

Other References

Blog Search Engines, n.d. [website]. Available at: http://websearch.about.com/od/internetresearch/a/newsblog.htm

Datta, A. and Pellini, A., 2011. Communicating research: a beginner’s guide for researchers at the Vietnamese Academy of Social Science. London: Overseas Development Institute. Available at: http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/docs/7183.pdf

Hovland , I., n.d. Successful communication: planning tools: how to write a communications strategy. London: Overseas Development Institute. Available at: http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/docs/6369.pdf

Overseas Development Institute, 2009. Targeting tools: blogging. London: Overseas Development Institute. Available at: http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/docs/6499.pdf

What Is RSS? RSS Explained n.d. [website]. Available at: http://www.whatisrss.com/

Wikipedia, 2012. Blog. Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [website]. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog (last modified 20 Feb 2012).

Wikipedia, 2011. Glossary of Blogging. Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [website]. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogroll#B (last modified 21 Nov 2011).

Research Communication Using Research Blogs

University of East Anglia

School of International Development