Vox Populi

From my Blottr

"Today I experienced a moment of mild (ish) panic - as far as I could tell, my Blottr articles had been deleted, and my account removed from the system. After extensive ranting to everyone in my vicinity, I eventually complained about it online. My Twitter and Blogger followers felt the full wrath here, and I thought I was done.

I then come home to find apologies from two separate Blottr big'uns, explaining the website was undergoing changes and this was a known bug. I proceed to check and, lo and behold, my article most definitely still existed and my account remained active. The brief amount of 'points' I accumulated seem to have vanished, but otherwise nothing seems to have changed.

That is, of course, with the exception of the site itself. Blottr has truly embraced the nature of the beast, and that beast is people: the new look website feels more dynamic, looks sharper, and is far neater than before. Breaking news cycles round a small carousel at the top, with further articles listed below in a much clearer form. Profiles look tidier, and information contained within them is more accessible to visitors. No earth-shattering changes were needed, nor even small ones, but Blottr have gone above and beyond to cater to the needs of their authors and viewers.

Social media is a platform I myself have come into recently, and it is one I find more and more fascinating every day - the will of the people to contribute their opinions to the world at large is truly astounding, and what Blottr have unleashed is (from where I stand) an unstoppable force epitomising 'vox populi' in it's truest form. One of the greatest parts is that the person sitting next to you could be the one to break the next big thing. And the best thing of all is that it could just as easily be you."

Blottr Rage - Over

Apparently the issue with Blottr was a bug in their system due to website changes. I'd yet to make a formal complaint to them about it, and two admin staff (one acting as an individual, one acting as the voice of Blottr itself) found me on Twitter and apologised, explaining the issue.

On this basis I retract everything I said previously, and commend them for their swift response to the issue - top bunch of guys'n'gals!

Blottr Rage

Well my Blottr account, opened last night to cover the footballing disaster in Port Said, north-east Egypt, appears to have been deleted. Last I'd checked I'd had a few punt-offs to Twitter, as well as several recommendations on Facebook. I don't understand...

I feared some kind of perniccerty (you'll forgive me, I've no idea whatsoever how one spells that...) legal point that I'd inadvertently trespassed into. I checked my emails, and there's nothing there. I can't check my account as my user page seems to no longer exist, though attempting to recreate my account tells me a user with that name already exists.

I've no idea what I've done, but obviously reporting on tragic news is a heinous crime in their eyes. I intend to protest this, but given the response I'd seen and encouragment I'd had I'm not entirely sure how I've wronged social media to the extent my account deseves deletion. I will, of course, understand if I've breached some rule I otherwise should have known of, but I demand to be told what I've done.

74 Dead Following Football Pitch Invasion

From my Blottr

"At least 74 civilians have been confirmed dead, with reports of hundreds more injured, at a football match in Port Said, north-east Egypt.

A rare win for club al-Masry over league leaders al-Ahly resulted in thousands streaming onto the pitch. Reports of rocks and knives being used are rampant, with some sources claiming fireworks and flares also entered the fray. The majority of deaths, including those of security workers at the stadium, came from head injuries - concussion, as well as knife wounds - and suffocation from the stampede.

Just over a year on from the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak, at a time when events in the country (from the inside, at least) seem to have changed far less than the 'government' would have us believe, it saddens me, and the world as a whole, that something as globally unifying as football can end up causing as much hurt and pain to families as the war they all hope to avoid."