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Secret blogs
I have been intrigued to learn how many of you have secret blogs. A secret blog is read by others, but the readers (ostensibly) don't know who is writing it. I have been told I should start a secret blog (what was the underlying psychological hypothesis behind this suggestion?)
What might such a blog consist of?
1. Detailed, quantitative macroeconomic forecasts.
2. Steamy erotic writing.
3. A running and uncensored narrative of my inner mental life (NB: not the same as #2).
4. Exclusive attention to the economics of love, marriage, and sex, in slightly more risque form.
5. The posts I write for MR but reject out of either prudence or fear you will be bored.
The bottom line: This idea will have to wait.
But if you are willing to write about your secret blog, or "your friend's" secret blog, comments are open and anonymous remarks are welcome. Why do people write secret blogs? And do they subconsciously wish to be discovered by at least a select few?
Posted by Tyler Cowen on January 31, 2006 at 05:03 AM in Web/Tech | Permalink
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Comments
I like having a disposable identity. It frees me from "brand maintenance" on my name and/or trust metrics. I can just be "some guy" in the web conversation, and that's my only goal right now.
Posted by: odograph at Jan 31, 2006 7:59:55 AM
I use my blog as a remotely accessible memory. I save quotes that I find interesting, and my very occasional thoughts. But mainly I use the blogroll for my day to day blog reading, it being faster to use than my browser's bookmarks ( one click rather than two clicks ), and also makes my reading list accessible from any computer on the Net.
Posted by: rws at Jan 31, 2006 8:54:42 AM
One word.
Tenure.
Posted by: Wayne at Jan 31, 2006 9:02:18 AM
I have people (ex-girlfriends, bosses) reading my regular blog, so I keep it somewhat clear of things that might hurt me when being researched for a job (or a date). But sometimes you just want to rant about something, and if you're in the habit of blogging things that bug you, a secret blog is a great place to do it.
The biggest difficulty is keeping enough identifying information out of it. You don't want a target of a rant to recognize who you are or that it's about them. But it's a great place for commenting about inner turmoil and un-PC thoughts that would be a detriment if associated with my public persona.
People somehow find these things, and read them. So you're not simply keeping a diary, though that would be a legitimate purpose as well.
Like odograph, I keep a separate identity for making snarkier and more impolitic comments on blogs, as well. Sometimes you don't feel like being measured or professional.
Posted by: Sandy Smith at Jan 31, 2006 9:38:40 AM
Would you count as a secret blog one that is widely read and linked, if the author keeps his/her identity concealed (e.g. 2blowhards)? How about one in which the author uses a pseudonym, but for one reason or another everyone knows his or her real name (e.g. Asymmetric Information)?
Posted by: Peter at Jan 31, 2006 9:40:19 AM
BTW, I sometimes wonder if Ben Franklin were alive today how many web identities he'd have ...
Posted by: odograph at Jan 31, 2006 10:40:12 AM
I only have two, the real me and odograph ... but just for the few of you who have not heard the term, I don't do "sock puppets." That is the old 'net name for creating multiple identities for the purpose of faux conversation or argument.
I'm not sure I'd put sock puppets past Ben though. If I recall correctly, he did exactly that in the letters column of his youthful newspaper.
Posted by: odograph at Jan 31, 2006 10:44:40 AM
Slartibarfast wouldn't tell you why he was a secret blogger:
First, my name is... not important. It's not a secret, but I'm not going to put it out here for reasons that are my own.
http://slartibartfast.blogfodder.net/archives/2003_11.html#009352
To that, Triticale added:
I'm not trying to conceal my True Name; I'm trying to establish a unique identity. My name is not my identity. As my father, who changed his own name during the Depression, when being too obviously Jewish made it harder to find work, liked to say, I don't care what you call me, as long as you don't call me "Late For Dinner".
http://triticale.mu.nu/archives/020538.php
Posted by: Kevin Brancato at Jan 31, 2006 10:46:58 AM
Me and a couple of friends who are investment professional write a secret blog on humor and investing. We keep our indetities secret because we would be more limited as to our subject matter otherwise. It frees us to do whatever. It also makes traffic generation difficult because 1) you lack an authentic real world reference point and 2) you can't tap your friends, family and coworkers without exposing your identity to some degree. But what can you do right?
http://longorshortcapital.com
Posted by: Johnny Debacle at Jan 31, 2006 12:37:59 PM
We also cannot type worth a damn, damn.
Posted by: Johnny Debacle at Jan 31, 2006 12:40:54 PM
My family started a 'blog a few years ago when Blogspot took off, just as a means of communicating (we're very opinionated, and we live in different states, so blogging has turned out to be a really good way of keeping in touch, for us).
But after about a year of carefree bloggin', my brother (the sys admin) got a Sitemeter, and we discovered that beaucoup random heads were surfin' through our family weblog! I mean, it was mostly other bloggers following links back to us (through THEIR statcounter or Sitemeter or whatever, and probably others through the Blogspot platform), but still.
We don't post our names on the 'blog.
I hesitate to tell people I know about it (it's not really *for* them).
We just moved to WordPress.com and noticed that we get four or five hits from Technorati searches every day. To me, this is like people walking down the street looking in store windows and then passing by my apartment and looking in like there should be merchandise there. Eww, this is my family 'blog, people, go away.
Posted by: son2 at Jan 31, 2006 3:00:16 PM
D'oh.
Posted by: son2 at Jan 31, 2006 3:02:56 PM
To say what needs to be said about Bush and his minions without having to fear repricussions from the NSA/CIA/FBI/IRS/SEC!! Obviously!!!
Posted by: marvin at Jan 31, 2006 4:00:27 PM
My dog was a prolific blogger. Does that count as a "secret" blog?
Sam's pet guardian
Posted by: Sam the beautiful all-black German Shepherd dog at Jan 31, 2006 6:14:37 PM
Many people write blogs to avoid prosecution or showing their hand. Case in point, http://www.invisiblog.com/
Posted by: Anon Blogger at Jan 31, 2006 7:49:48 PM
In my case, I just don't care. My blog is pretty uncontroversial stuff - board game related - so there's no need to conceal my identity. On the other hand, it's going to be read by random strangers, and who am I to them?
Posted by: Me at Feb 1, 2006 1:28:12 AM
I keep my blog anonymous for one reason: I sometimes post about political or religious issues, and I don't want potential future emoployers (academic or otherwise) to be able to find out my political or religious opinions from Google before deciding whether or not to hire me.
Why do I, an economist (Ph.D. from UChicago, no less) talk about non-economic subjects? Well, we all know that non-economists have no problem pontificating about economics, so I see no reason to be shy when it comes to speaking out about politics, chemistry, security, physics, terrorism, religion, or anything else, for that matter. An unlike certain politicians talking about economics, I actually know something about those other topics!
Having said that, I'm thinking of starting a second, non-anonymous blog consisting purely of economics posts. (Not to say that there's no economics in religion or politics, of course -- Hi Larry Iannaccone!) Part of the reason is that I've actually met both the MR bloggers, and several other econo-bloggers, in person, and it's been quite frustrating not to be able to tell them how much I like, and link to, their blogs!
The practical problem, of course, is translating the readership I've built up on my anonymous blog, to readership on my proposed non-anonymous blog -- without giving away my identify on the first blog.
In the meantime, please visit me at http://differentriver.com
Posted by: Different River at Feb 1, 2006 2:27:46 PM
I keep a "secret" blog over on Livejournal to talk about details of my sex life which I don't want to share with people in my social circle. I also use it to surf for amateur porn without having the various amateur porn communities listed in my "public" livejournal.
Posted by: anonymous at Feb 1, 2006 7:12:07 PM
I have a secret blog, but if I told you where it was, I would have to shoot you and eat your brain.
-russ
Posted by: Russell Nelson at Feb 2, 2006 1:25:56 AM
I am a practicing lawyer with a non-common name, and do not ever want to find myself in a position where something I have said on my blog is inconvenient for my professional role or my clients' interests. If I were to blog under my real name, it would be towards the top of the Google results for that search, and I just don't want that happening. Which is a shame, really, and I envy those people who find a happy congruence between their blogging and professional lives.
Posted by: Not My Blogname at Feb 2, 2006 5:03:48 PM
I have three blogs, of which the semi-anonymous one is www.doesmyasslookfatinthesepants.com. It's more of a conceptual art piece than a real blog, anyway. I don't actively discourage anyone from finding out who I am, and my friends spill the beans whenever they link to it (I think I have linked to myself, too), but I keep my name out of the blog because I don't want this to be the first thing that comes up when one googles me. What kills me is that the joke blog gets more traffic than the "real" ones do.
Posted by: Hillary Johnson at Feb 6, 2006 5:19:09 PM
I blog about an issue I'm very involved in. In pursuit of that issue I was appointed to a governmental advisory committe. I would like to be able to blog about the activities on that committee in a frank and unabashed way. That may involve saying unflattering things about the other members of that committee and/or the person who appointed me. So I write a secret blog.
Posted by: secret blog at Feb 6, 2006 5:30:44 PM
The phrase "secret blog" doesn't do justice to what it really is. In one word: CATHARSIS.
I stumbled across this thread in the search for a cool place to keep my new web journal (and, btw, being such a fan of the english language, I detest the word "blog"...very unpretty word, imho). I added the URL to this post because the journal is now finished.
I started the atlscorp24 LiveJournal about 4 years ago as a safe haven from ... anyone else. A place where I can deposit my feelings and words without ANY second thoughts as to what people will think, say or react. It was nice. See, I truly despise gossip, and well, at the time, I needed a place to vent without it getting around to everyone I knew, usually with ... reprecussions.
Anyway, thats the deal with my "secret blog" or web journal, or private journal, etc. ad nauseum. The URL to my old blog is full of ... well.. my life for the last four years. Not for the faint of heart, nor children. But I'm glad I had it. Now, to refine and redefine.
(sorry to ramble, but I'm a little drunk)
One last thing, and I'll return to The Nameless Hordes that I came from.... someone mentioned how they had like 3 blogs or something like that.. THANK YOU. See, I'm from the old school of journals: pen and ink in a spiral bound notebook. Unfortunately, my life is no where near that simple where I can take x amount of minutes everyday and add to my journal (the last time I had that kind of time was the last time I was in drug treatment)... so, computer geek that I like to fancy myself, web journals (doesn't that sound so much better than "blog"?!?) are the perfect way to get stuff off my chest/brain/etc. How public they are, well, thats for more sober contemplation, cuz I'll tell ya this: I'm almost 30 now, and just one journal 4 years ago was enough, but I think a more varied approach may be indicated nowadays. 'nuff said...
Thanks for reading a total stranger's thoughts:
Namaste
Adam
Posted by: Lurker at Feb 11, 2006 12:34:43 AM
My blog used to be secret. Craig Newmark or Jaqueline Mackey Paisley Passey outed me. (No biggie ;)
I had a couple of reasons.
1) I had family issues that cut drastically into my research - not a good thing when someone has just hired you to bring your established research program to their school. Blogging was a way to sharpen my writing edge while my projects were shelved. It also fit better into the smaller more irregular blocks of time I had. But, because others were looking for evidence of my publishing, it seemed smarter to hide my blogging.
2) Branding - I thought quite hard about establishing a brand rather than a name. I am never going to be Tyler Cowen (or even better, Becker and Posner). But I can establish voluntaryXchange. (As to the name, I liked the idea here - to have a name that means something in economics - plus I wanted something that would show up well on the Windows taskbar.) Further along that line, the top tiers of the profession are very unclear on the concept that where you are is a strong determinant of publishing success. That isn't sour grapes - when I put Tulane on old papers that had been rejected I got revise and resubmits at good journals. Branding my blog was a good way to avoid that in a new field.
3) Tenure - I was in good shape here except for the what-have-you-done-for-us-lately factor. Blogging didn't substitute for research, but it did substitute for some travel and public speaking. It was in my interest to stay under the radar until I could show that I was getting readers. Having colleagues see your blog discussed in Best of the Web Today when their minds are still open is a good thing.
4) Accreditation - I was hired at SUU to raise the research profile of the business school prior to going up for AACSB accreditation. In preparing my section of the accreditation report, my interpretation of the AACSB standard I was working on very clearly included blogging (although I'm still not sure that AACSB understands this). But again, not being sure of how they would interpret what they wrote, it seemed sensible to hide my identity.
Posted by: Dave Tufte at Feb 16, 2006 3:30:17 PM
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Posted by: levan at Sep 6, 2006 2:51:10 AM
