There is great excitement in the blogosphere at the moment, as the Sydney Writers Centre have just announced that their competition seeking to find the “Best Australian Blogs” are now open again.
I’ve had a look over things and I’ve got a few criticisms about these awards. No, I’m not criticising anyone for linkbait again (although I could), this time, my complaints are of a more personal nature.
Firstly, I love the idea of having “Special Awards” for blogs. I love to see a good blog post highlighted as much as the next person and I am eagerly awaiting the finalists, in the hope that I can find some new bloggers to add to my reader.
My complaints lie with this part of the competition details however:
Special awards are competition-wide accolades designed to recognise outstanding posts and blogging potential. These are the perfect opportunity for smaller blogs to get noticed and celebrated. There are two types of special awards – two for younger blogs and two for outstanding posts.
You must enter the relevant URL or dates requested for each round you want to enter.
The special awards for 2012 are:
- Outstanding funny blog post
The most hilarious post entered.- Outstanding advocacy blog post
The best blog posts advocating or fundraising for an issue.- Best new blog
The best blog under 6 months old.- Best young blogger
The best blog written by a writer under 26.[highlighting mine]
Hormone induced grumpiness on my part? Very likely – but I don’t like that people assume that because a blogger is younger than 26, their blog is automatically “smaller” and “younger”. Is this just a terminology complaint? I don’t think so.
I have a personal interest here, because I am 23 – and yet my blog is coming up to five years old. Older than a good deal of blogs in the Australian Blogosphere. And – if I do say so myself, it’s a relatively successful platform for me and I’m rather proud of its popularity.
Does the Sydney Writers Centre assume that popularity only comes with a side of wrinkles? It feels rather ageist, if anything.
My other complaint is that because I write about parenting here, I can only have my blog nominated in the Parenting category.
I nearly choked laughing at the possibility of me having any chance at the parenting category – have you seen who the judge is? The entire Internet by this stage knows that Brenda rather dislikes me and my opinions, and therefore, I can’t see me having a snowflakes chance.
Maybe that would be the case anyway – maybe Sleepless Nights is not good enough to ever win awards. But I would like the right to start from the same starting point as everyone else in the race.
We won’t even discuss the ethics of having someone who is part of the parenting community themselves, judging this category – but I will ask, is it fair to ask someone to judge their friends and peers, and decide who is best, while expecting them to remain completely impartial?
All of this might sound like sour grapes, but, is it sour grapes to voice the legitimate concerns I have? And ought I be penalised for asking these questions?
It remains to be seen whether my concerns will be taken seriously, or taken personally.
And yes, I’d love to be nominated still and I would love to win.
But will I be holding my breath? No, I will not.
A very astute post Veronica and finding and opening up a good line of questioning about ethics in competitions. The unfortunate perils of ‘blogging competitions’ or competitions of any nature really. Someone will always win – and sometimes it’s a case of not what you know, but who you know!!!!!
As much as this will sound ugly and somewhat sour grapesish’, I suspect a winner has already been highlighted. As honestly, there are sections in lots of little ‘meet n greet forums’ that ask you to deliver your web address (ha guilty as charged who doesn’t want their address known). So in that sense, I suspect it would nearly be impossible to be an ‘unknown’ in the Australian blogosphere scene.
As a complete aside, funny according to whom? Is that according to your readers by comments/stats? Then doesn’t that pull the p*^% with regards to being a small blog? Fundraiser again wouldn’t that indicate that there would be some sort of following? Would thus be hard not to know about some aspect of what the blog is advocating for/fundraising for – especially when things go viral in this day and age. I share your sentiments with hit (like and send me into the lights of Hollywood type make me famous kind of comps.)
Further, I’m always personally taken aback by self nomination (but that’s more an issue with my own personal ethics) merit shouldn’t it be granted by the people who read you and not forcing the hand? Bahumbug to competitions. But then to see the other side of the fence isn’t that how money changes hands, how the world spins. By someone getting a benefit and marketing, PR and all that jazz.
I can certainly agree it’s noice to get the accolades and feel warm and fuzzy with a big ego boost but I wonder once awarded do people become affected by ‘popularity’ and thus integrity and purpose become a thing of the past.
After a lot of the fiasco of last years ‘circle comp’ and the ‘asia pac awards’ – I’m glad I’m just me 🙂
Thanks for looking into the terms and conditions and looking at the bigger picture sometimes it’s just nice to know that there are other skeptics out there 🙂
Yes, I am a tad cynical after all this time blogging – but I also like to question the why of things.
I liked your comment.
Would it have been that hard to find an impartial judge who was familiar with blog and also able to review blogs based on the writers skills? I shouldn’t think it would be.
I’m not sure, as I’m not sure what they were looking for in a judge. I’m not sure it’s fair on Brenda to ask her to review her friends and peers though.
I do not really like blogging competitions run by companies but I think the Sydney Writers Centre is a very ethical and professional organisation. I like the fact that it is judged on merit and you do not have to go “begging” for votes. I would never nominate myself for an award because I would feel like a complete tool.
What is funniest? Best? It is all subjective. Like the Archibald Prize or Miss Universe.
Last year Mrs Woog, I declined my nomination in these very same awards. I wrote to the organiser and politely voiced my concerns about what I viewed as perceived bias from one of the judges. The correspondence I received back was not very professional at all. In fact the email was very passive aggressive with quite a nasty undertone to it.
I kept quiet about my concerns because I knew it would degenerate into a he said/she said debacle.
But I will state publicly here that if I am nominated again this year, once again I will decline my nomination.
I do like that the SWC runs this competition based on something other than votes – frankly, that is something we need more of. Begging for votes is a bit icky.
Hi Veronica,
We haven’t met, but a couple of people sent me your blog this morning. I coordinate the competition. I wrote a really long comment, and then realised you probably wouldn’t appreciate that on your blog 🙂
So I’m going to put my response in an email. I think you raise some important points here, and I want to answer them. Especially about why we decided to add the “best young blogger” award (mainly based on 2011 feedback), and our judging process (we’ve worked really hard to make it as objective as possible. A lot of that hinges on the shortlisting process done by the Sydney Writers’ Centre team, and the scoring sheets).
Thank you for writing this. It helps us make sure we keep the competition evolving each year. Hopefully we’ll chat via email later today.
Hi Rose,
Thank you for taking my questioning in the way it was intended – a conversation starter and a look at the how behind things.
Damn, as someone with wrinkles a plenty and a depressing sprinkling of grey short and curlies I appear to have missed the popular boat. But on a more serious note I do like that for once it is a more merit rather than vote begging criteria. The popularity ones always make me feel a little unclean and really seem pointless for anyone other than the already established bigger blogs. As someone of the older variety I do get a bit peeved with having just a younger category, although this seems the norm these days. If you are going to do one why not do a few more age groups. But that could just be my almost 40 pre-coffee grump speaking. At least with this one there is a chance of variety and finding new less well known blogs.
I’m going grey too – I’d blame blogging, but sadly I suspect it’s genetics. Sigh.
The popularity ones for me, are little more than linkbait and I don’t like them. The SWC is definitely a cut above them, just because it’s judged and not making bloggers beg for votes.
i have to disagree with you. I think it IS a terminology complaint. I think they know what they want, but they’ve worded it badly. Perhaps they should have called it Best Young WRITER Blogger, because this fits you perfectly, being both young and an excellent blogger.
My terminology complaint is around this: “two [awards] for younger blogs” when there is actually only one award for a younger blog, and one for a young blogger. Which is probably me splitting hairs, but you know.
Then again, it does say Best Young Blogger, the best blog written by a writer under 26, which doesn’t necessarily mean a “young/new” blog; that category is covered by Best New Blog, the best blog under 6 months old. This doesn’t appear to have any blogger age restriction on it, just the age of the blog itself.
You are obsessed by Brenda.
bahahaha Obsessed? Really? Lol, if that was the case Dear Colonel, surely every second blog post would be about Brenda.
Obsessed is a very strong word.
You however, are anonymous, and therefore, your opinions don’t count here.
YES with the ‘younger blogger’ thing. I’m 25 so I am special? It feels a little patronising to me, but then I always have issues with the ‘young’ label. People tend to use ‘young’ as equal to ‘naive’ and ‘not good enough’.
I’m not in the parenting sphere, obviously, but I do question Brenda’s position as the judge of parenting awards. It’s a big ask for her to put aside all her friendships and connections to be unbiased when judging.
I have actually found that young bloggers tend to be more experienced. I move in different circles, but I know of a number of bloggers under 26 who have been blogging for 8 or even 10+ years. This is their generation. It’s the over 26ers who are still finding their way on the internet – my real life age group barely know what a blog is.
I’m a bit meh because what category would I fit in? I love the fact that it’s judged, votes are pointless. And in other non-blogging things I do the judges or selectors are experienced in the area, so I can see that point. However even the science writing scene seems to be bigger than blogging, and it doesn’t have all the weird communtiy stuff attached that mummy blogging does – I’ll be disappointed if I’m not selected this year (closer to devastated, actually) but I know there’s nothing personal there.
I think part of it is because bloggers are still finding their niche – are we writers? Counsellers? Moderators? Party gals? Rampant extroverts? I keep thinking of ABDPBT and the EVENT, which basically comes down to fate. Who can parenting bloggers in particular judge ourselves against who isn’t part of our immediate community? I’m so glad that science writing is working really hard to be open and will consider me alongside the authors and journalists.
My blog has never been popular, never amounted to many comments, and is one of the least read ones out there.
And it’s not because it’s new – my old blog was 5+ years old, and I still was amazed the day I got an average of 100 views a day.
That being said, I have essentially quit voting in those contests. Because the “blogs” that win are ones I would hardly qualify as blogs. Yeah, they’re often entertaining sites, but to me a blog involves, yunno, quality writing.
Of course, that may separate writers from bloggers.
Wow this is an interesting way to get on the judges radar! Is there a creative category?
Nice work! Nx
P.S. I’m just jealous btw as I doubt there will be a category for me either…aw wait maybe the funniest? ok ok I know who am I kidding!
I think there is a distinct difference between young blogger and new blog – and I don’t think these are necessarily related.
As for self nomination – so many other industries do it. The Walkleys, other media awards. Why not bloggers?
Asking for votes is no different than asking for sponsors IMO.
Comments on this entry are closed.