Indonesian Bloggers

Posted by: omagaul on: March 4, 2009

• In: Blogger | Culture | Indonesia | social media
• 1 Comment

Blogs, and other social media, are starting to replace the success of traditional media, such as magazines, newspapers, and even television. It is the current trend! People will no longer wait if they seek information. They want it right here, right now! No wonder the number of online newspaper and magazine is increasing rapidly. Almost every printed publication will have an online version – also blogs!

Printed publication people use blogs to get in touch with their customers/readers. They offer interactive applictations in their blogs. Some of them are good, but there are also some thet are just “followers blogs”; they do it (have a blog) because everybody else is doing it.

Back home in Indonesia, blogs are very popular. Yet, as I now live in Europe, I cannot help but wonder why blogs ain’t that popular in Europe, to be specific, in Holland. Do Dutch people think that blogs are only for lousy, melancholic, in-need-for-attention, people? I guess not, because there tons of good blogs in the world (try to google specific subject like branding or engineering).

Thanks to my intercultural communication, I know now why blogs ain’t popular in Holland. Indonesians lack freedom of speech in public. Correct me if I am wrong, tho. Yet, I reckon Dutch people can easily speak up publicly. If they don’t like one thing, or disagree with certain opinions, they will say it directly – for sure! Indonesian? Ah, they would keep it for themselves. Sometimes they would share their deepest, most honest opinion in their small community (family, best friends, or spouse). Most of the time, they will stay silent.

Hence blogs are so popular. They express themselves in their blogs. They write what they think about certain think, about certain people, disagreeing, commenting, laughing at, and sharing their most honest thoughts.

Good for the Indonesians. I am proud to be one. There ain’t right or wrong. It is just the way it is.

Another thing that differs Indonesian bloggers to other bloggers, they don’t only meet up in the online realm; they also meet each other regularly in the real life. Citing from this famous Indonesian blogger, in Jakarta (the capital city of Indonesia), the bloggers meet up quite regularly (in this post, the writer concerns about the possibility to continue this meeting is endangered, i’m sorry to hear this, ndoro).

Once a year, there is also this big Pesta Blogger (en: Blogger Party) that is organised. Indonesian bloggers from all over the place attend this event. Previous Blogger Party in the end of 2008 was packed with bloggers from, not only Indonesia, but also from abroad. They organised discussion, workshop, and also special awards were given to some chosen bloggers.

I am impressed! Yet, I ponder, what will this world be in 5 – 10 years time? We now have this blogs, social networking sites like facebook, twitter, poken, Ipod, Iphone,..  and many more. Can you imagine?