Forbes Surveys Best Blogs

Arik Hesseldahl, the e-business columnist for Forbes.com is doing a a killer series on the best blogs out there in the land of blogatry.

If Google’s recent acquisition of Pyra Labs, creator of the Blogger.com service, didn’t drive the point home, then we’ll spell it out. Blogging–the term is a creative contraction of Web and log–is the Internet sensation of the moment. And if it doesn’t remind you of the days when the Net was young, before the era of venture capitalists, IPOs and Dadaist business plans, then you haven’t been paying attention.

But just like it was in 1995 or so when the World Wide Web first burst upon the scene, separating the good stuff from the useless drivel is a big chore. No one has yet counted how many of these personal diaries of deep or not-so-deep thoughts there are, but there are thousands, and navigating the blogosphere is a daunting task for the uninitiated. We’ve sampled much of what’s out there on the subjects of technology, media and the economy and over the next week will be sharing our picks for the Web’s best blogs.

On Friday he covered the Best Tech Blogs, including, as ranked, Slashdot, Techdirt, Gizmodo, kuro5hin, and Reiter, including a ranking system based upon Presentation, Quality, Relevance, Reputation.

Putting their tech money where their mouths (or keyboards) are, Forbes has taken THEIR presentation seriously: the five reviews waltz by in their own cool window in cluding neat little graphics.

Today, Hesseldahl reviews the five Best Media Blogs:

In a way, almost every Web log, or blog, is somehow about media. The links that make them interesting to read invariably come from somewhere else. But as certain as the sun will rise in the morning, and as bloggers and blog-readers everywhere can attest, media is nothing without criticism and commentary about media. Dan Rather’s interview with Saddam Hussein was a big score for CBS, but for the blogging set, the real news was the raft of online criticism and commentary that followed.

None of the media-oriented blogs we’ve collected here are affiliated with any major media companies. All focus on their own specific corner of the media universe and have a devoted, growing following of readers. Some do it for profit, while others do it for fun. All do it well.

The five Best Media Blogs are: Metafilter, Blogcritics, I Want Media, Gawker, and Romenesko. We are thrilled and honored, go read the review for yourself. Thanks to Arik Hesseldahl and Forbes.com!