I am off this evening to my first ever “Third Monday” event. Third Monday is a social media and public relations meet up organized by Joe Thornley of Thornley Fallis PR and the very interesting Pro PR blog. My dear friend Ryan Anderson introduced me to the whole deal and after missing January’s meet up I’m especially excited that my Third Monday debut will feature Paul Wells as the special guest.
I was first tempted to join Third Monday as a networking scheme, since I was looking for a new job at the time. Now that I’m settling in with CBI, however, I am looking forward to sharing ideas and gathering insights into how to effectively utilize social media tools as part of a public relations strategy.
I am also somewhat apprehensive, though, about wading into a pool teeming with blog aficionados. See, I’ve always felt somewhat ill at ease with the entire blogosphere. I find myself in a strange position of moderation, wherein I will defend blogs vocally and passionately in a room full of non-believers but I am equally uncomfortable around bloggers who trumpet this medium as the be-all-end-all of modern communications.
I don’t necessarily think blogs will change the world – at least not in a radical way – and I certainly don’t share the same sense of smug self-satisfaction (alliteration BAM!) that many of my WordPress-enabled colleagues do when they opine for the masses.
It’s much the same way I feel about the mainstream media. Anyone who followed my ravings over at Megalomedia will know of the vitriol I posses for much of what the mainstream press does but at the same time, I get enranged when I here people piss all over the “media” for making our society into a modern-day Gomorrah.
I don’t know, perhaps I am the quintessential Canadian, more comfortable in the middle than at any extreme. All I know is tonight has the potential to be both stimulating and distasteful intellectually. I’m a big fan of the Third Monday creator’s blog and I trust Ryan’s judgement – but there will be a lot of bloggers there…
I’m sure I’ll have reflections to post tomorrow.
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