BREAKING NEWS: 2009 Military Blog Conference Moves Back to Washington, D.C. Area, April 24th - 25th
Via Andi and the 2009 Milblog Conference website...As you know, we experimented with moving our annual conference to Vegas in 2008. We had a great time in Vegas - how could you not have a great time in Vegas - but, Washington is a better venue for our official conference, so the 2009 MilBlog Conference will be held in
Going back to the successful model of 2007, all events will take place at The Westin Arlington Gateway on April 24-25. We've secured a block of rooms for attendees. You can reserve your room by clicking here. We know some of you like to combine your trip to the conference with a vacation, so you can reserve rooms under our block from April 22-29 (subject to availability).
The registration interface is currently being revamped and updated. Once the changes have been completed, I'll post a link which will allow you to register for the conference. I doubt the link will be ready before February 1, so please sit tight while the changes are made.
The registration fee is $50 per person and includes dinner, breakfast and entry to the conference. Pretty good deal...
As with everything, milblogging has grown and changed over the years. To reflect that growth, we're adding some unconventional, interesting elements to this year's program. We'll begin announcing the schedule of speakers and topics within the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned.
Tentative program as follows:
Friday, April 24:
8:00P -
Saturday, April 25:
9:00A - 4:00P: 2009 MilBlog Conference
*The milblogger meeting will be an informal, voluntary meeting to discuss items of interest to milbloggers. Among the items we'll be discussing are how we can help raise money for troop charities, help veterans and families in need and better work together on various issues now that the community has become so large.
Keep updated on the 2009 Milblog Conference here.
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News Story: Israel Keeps Tight Leash on Media
Friday, January 9, 2009, 08:05 AM - News Stories
(Los Angeles Times) On Dec. 29, the third day of the air campaign, an Israeli army channel debuted on YouTube, complete with a daily video blog, presentations of the history of the conflict from an Israeli perspective and cockpit footage of missile strikes.Elsewhere on the Internet, pro-Israeli students and bloggers created QassamCount, an application on the social networking sites Facebook and Twitter that posts an update every time a rocket hits Israel. Pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian hackers have also engaged in a back-and-forth battle against websites on the other side.
Israel has worked to prevent the leaks from soldiers and officers that plagued the war with Hezbollah, even taking away cellphones. In the 2006 conflict, calls from soldiers in the field influenced Israeli public opinion as reporters printed firsthand accounts of the soldiers' uncertainty in the mission and lack of preparedness.
Read the entire story here.
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News Story: Soldier, blogger back from Afghanistan duty
Friday, January 9, 2009, 07:57 AM - News Stories
(The Daily Gazette) During his deployment, Fanning wrote a blog for The Daily Gazette. In 30 entries, he shared his impressions of daily life in “We have come to Afghanistan not for vengeance but to help bring about a new beginning because we believe this is the best way to help protect America and because we want to help people in need,” Fanning said.
Read the entire story here.
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Milblogging.com Working on New Web 2.0 Re-design of Site
Thursday, January 8, 2009, 09:53 AM
The Milblogging.com website, which was originally founded in 2005, needs a new look-and-feel. I’m working on a completely new Web 2.0 re-design of the site and I’m looking for your ideas, suggestions, what’s needed, what’s not, and more. If you’d like to help, please send an email to Milblogging@gmail.com or use the Contact Us form. One of the major goals of the new site is to continue to promote awareness of military bloggers, so keep that in mind. And don’t forget, voting is still open in the 2008 Weblog Awards for 'Best Military Blog'. So get out and vote. Now, I’m not doing very well in the standings (with less than 200 votes), but just being selected as a Finalist has been an honor. Thanks to everyone who has voted for Milblogging.com.
On a side note: High-five to my Mom who drives to every Kinkos and Public Library each day in
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News Story: An Army Wife's Blog Heartbreakingly becomes an Army Widow's Blog
Thursday, January 8, 2009, 08:34 AM - News Stories, Milbloggers in the News
(Foreign Policy) Dena Yllescas's account of losing her husband, an Army captain injured by an IED in Read the entire story here.
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News Story: Air Force Releases 'Counter-Blog' Marching Orders
Tuesday, January 6, 2009, 09:48 PM - News Stories
(Wired) Bloggers: If you suddenly find Air Force officers leaving barbed comments after one of your posts, don't be surprised. They're just following the service's new "counter-blogging" flow chart. In a twelve-point plan, put together by the emerging technology division of the Air Force's public affairs arm, airmen are given guidance on how to handle "trolls," "ragers" -- and even well-informed online writers, too. It's all part of an Air Force push to "counter the people out there in the blogosphere who have negative opinions about the U.S. government and the Air Force," Captain David Faggard says...Hat tip to my pal Noah.
Read the entire story here.
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Voting Polls Now Open in the 2008 Weblog Awards 'Best Military Blog'
Monday, January 5, 2009, 09:20 PM
Click here to vote. As you can see, I’m close to last place right now with about 20 votes. But hey, it’s tough going up against the list of finalists. They’re all great. Right now, Blackfive and Michael Yon are running away with the lead early. So feel free to send a vote to Milblogging.com. If you don’t know much about me: I’ve blogged from Now Blackfive and Michael Yon -- I hate to start wild rumors about either, but I hear they cut in front of old ladies in the shopping line at the Supermarket. And regularly make babies cry.
For fun.
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Don't Forget to Start Voting for the 2008 Weblog Awards 'Best Military Blog' on Monday, January 5th
Sunday, January 4, 2009, 08:29 PM
You can vote for the 'Best Military Blog' starting Monday, January 5th, on the Weblog Awards website. Here's the link to the Voting page for Best Military Blog.Needless to say, I'm a finalist. So if you plan to vote, feel free to send a vote my way. Or you can also vote for my fellow Military.com writers over at Op-For. They're finalists, too.
Although, I hear they like to kick puppies and push old ladies.
I'm just saying...
For more information on the Weblog Awards and the exact starting time of voting, visit the official website.
Webmaster UPDATE: Polls are now open.
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Remembering Military Bloggers' Personal Stories: The Blog of War
Sunday, January 4, 2009, 08:20 PM
(Mudville Gazette) In compiling the entry below, it occrred to me there may be readers here who don't have a copy of The Blog of War: Front-Line Dispatches from Soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Blackfive-compiled collection of milblog entries from what might be called "the golden age". If you're one of those folks I'd urge you to get one.Reading (or re-reading) these stories you (like me) might be reminded that everything done before "the surge" was not stupid, pointless, and wrong - and you might even come to share my complete disgust with those who now believe otherwise.
Read the entire story here.
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News Story: Fallen soldier's journal and videotapes featured in a 60-minute documentary
Friday, January 2, 2009, 06:29 PM - News Stories
(Stars and Stripes) On "I will read ‘The Principles of Writing,’ and then I will write the Great American novel and get hired as a professor at a prestigious university," he joked in the government-issued green log book he carried with him wherever he went.
"But first, I have to make it out of this war alive."
It was his 34th day as a member of a psychological operations unit working out of Al Karabilah, a town in
Read the entire story here.
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News Story: Israeli army tells foreign journos to blog off
Friday, January 2, 2009, 09:20 AM - News Stories
(RT) ...the Israeli army has created its own YouTube channel, with an entire department dedicated to blogging on the internet. At the end of the day who wins the war in Read the entire story here.
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UPDATE: 2008 Weblog Awards 'Best Military Blog'
Friday, January 2, 2009, 09:07 AM
(Weblog Awards) Every day we'll be updating the site with important information and observations about the progress of The 2008 Weblog Awards.
Today we're announcing that the permanent location of each of the 48 polls have been set. The finalist polls can be reached via the main poll navigation page here.
All comments will be disabled later today. Discussion is allowed on The Weblog Awards Forum.
As a reminder, the voting starts January 5th, and I’ll be posting all the information here on this blog. Happy New Year!
Read the entire story here.
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News Story: Israel takes battle with Hamas to YouTube
Wednesday, December 31, 2008, 05:43 PM - News Stories
(Associated Press) But YouTube temporarily yanked the clips on Tuesday after viewers, apparently supporters of Hamas, flagged it as objectionable and asked that it be taken down. The video sharing Web site restored the video a few hours later, labeling it inappropriate for minors.
"The blogosphere and the new media are basically a war zone" in a battle for world opinion, military spokesman Maj. Avital Leibovich said Wednesday.
Leibovich said the new YouTube channel and a new blog the military is launching are an important part of
Read the entire story here.
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News Story: Network News Retreats from Iraq
Tuesday, December 30, 2008, 08:46 AM - News Stories
(Wired News) If there's a bright spot in all this, it's the fact that coverage of the "forgotten war" in Read the entire story here.
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Announcing the 2008 Weblog Awards 'Military Blog' Finalists
Tuesday, December 30, 2008, 02:56 AM
Voting is scheduled to begin on Monday, From My Position... on the way!
The War on Big Tobacco
Blackfive
Michael Yon
This Ain't Hell
One Marine's View
Op For
Army of Dude
Milblogging,com
Knee Deep in the Hooah!
You know what you need to do starting January 5th, don't you? Get out and vote for the best military blog. Or, you can just vote for Milblogging.com. For the past few years I've been trying new things to bring more awareness to the Milblogging.com website and the index of over 2,000 military blogs, and I think winning a Weblog Award would do the job. I mean because, tagging public bathroom stalls and spray painting subway cars with “www.Milblogging.com Forever!” and “Visit Milblogging.com The World’s Largest Index of Military Blogs” was kind of illegal. Plus, now I have carpal tunnel syndrome.
To keep updated on this year's awards, visit the Weblog Awards website.
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Tonight! 2008 Weblog Awards 'Military Blog' Finalists Announced
Monday, December 29, 2008, 03:17 PM
Per the official 2008 Weblog Awards website, news was just posted that the finalists in all blog categories will be announced this evening. That's tonight, Monday, December 29th. No word on exact time, but this is exciting news. I’ve been waiting for the list of finalists since Christmas Day. Who knew, that if you hold your breath, wishes can come true. My wife said I was crazy for holding my breath because of the dangers. I showed her! And best of all, no side effects.Well, I’m off to play with the Unicorns dancing in my Home Office. So perty...
Wheeeeeeee!
Keep updated here.
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Bouhammer: Thank You Milbloggers, Readers for Making a Difference
Monday, December 29, 2008, 01:26 PM
(Bouhammer.com) Bouhammer Note-The following blog is copied from an email I received thanking me, but more importantly thanking all of you who sent the ETT team stuff after reading this blog from December 2nd.Just wanted to thank you and all of your readers for the incredible support that you guys have given us. We are literally swimming in care packages, which is great. We had been down to eating MREs for two meals a day due to chow resupply, however with the stuff everyone sent us we put together some ad-hoc meals to get away from MREs.
I know that everyone’s lives are so busy during the holidays and the thought that people took that valuable time to put something together for us showed us the true meaning of Christmas.
Read the entire story here.
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Still Waiting on News of the 2008 Weblog Awards Military Blog Finalists
Monday, December 29, 2008, 06:42 AM
For all you fans of the Weblog Awards out there, if you're interested in learning which military blogs are finalists, guess what? Looks like you'll be waiting even longer. According to the official 2008 Weblog Awards site, December I have to admit though, I've got some experience with setting and missing deadlines each year when I host and run the MILBloggies. But I’ve learned a lot over the years, and there's an easy way for the Weblog Awards to sort this date out once and for all. Allow me to share...Normally, before I even get started with the Planning Phase, I pick an arbitrary date by asking my kids their favorite numbers or reading a Fortune Cookie. Obviously, if I miss the first date I tack on another month. Or maybe three or four months. Sometimes up to six. Who knows? It really depends on how my cornflakes align in my cereal bowl that morning.
I like to set my targets low.
Really, it's a gift passed down from generations of slackers.
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Contrasting and Comparing Corporate Bloggers with Military Bloggers
Sunday, December 28, 2008, 08:04 AM - Milblog Research
(Soldiers in the Blogosphere) Thanks to the The first post is on thenextweb.com which stated, first, that only 1 in 6 people find corporate blogs trustworthy. I'll ask some more questions about perceptions toward official military blogs some other time. For the time being, suffice it to say that this, at its roots, is a problem with credibility!
Read the entire story here.
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2008 Weblog Awards 'Best Military Blog' Finalists, Delayed til Dec. 28th
Friday, December 26, 2008, 08:26 AM
It appears we're gonna have to wait a few more days to find out who the 'Military Blog' finalists are in this year's Weblog Awards. According to the official website, the announcement has been delayed until December 28th. Now, they were supposed to be announced yesterday, but because of all the work involved in running the awards, we'll need to be patient just a little longer. I know, I'm sad too. In the meantime, I'll just sit here and play with my Nintendo Wii my wife got me for Christmas for the next few days. I'm already undefeated in all the games I got here at home. Yesterday, I destroyed my youngest son something like 260 to zero in Madden Football. Honestly, the score might have been a little closer: except my wife had to change his diaper during the third quarter. I pause for no one.
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