Blogging is one of the phenomena of the 21 century and has been around for more than 10 years now.  Blogs (or “web-logs”) are effective online diaries – online spaces where people maintain and update information on a regular basis. They range from personal  – maintained by individual experts or just people inspired by a certain topic, to organizational, corporate, professional blogs, blogs initiated by networks and associations, by government authorities, networks or foundations.  Blogs can focus on a narrow subject or can be multi-dimensional and multi-disciplinary. Many blogs are interactive – providing an option for the users to leave comments although the Blog Owner can usually set up an editorial control on users’ comments.

Making and maintaining a successful blogging online space is an art by itself. There are plenty of tips to be successful in the blogging process and to attract more visitors to your blog. I find especially useful the one given by Katy Cowan, read here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture-professionals-network/culture-professionals-blog/2011/nov/17/top-tips-successful-blog

Arts management and cultural policy experts and organizations started blogging not a long time ago. There are still issues related to privacy, control of information, quality control and users’ interaction, copyright issues in the blogging process. It seems to me that cultural researchers and experts are still not very keen to share information and knowledge online in an open way. It is quite hard to find a good and well maintain blog with well written, comprehensive and regularly updated information and expert opinions in the field of management, marketing, fundraising, online technologies, and policy issues in the arts and culture sector.

I spotted up several well-written and regularly updated blogs, initiated by colleagues, friends and diverse organizations in Europe, North America and Asia. Have a look and enjoy reading:

• Efi Kaprodin, Greece: researcher and lecturer in arts management, cultural tourism and much more: http://ekarpodini.com/en/
• Simon Mundy, UK: poet, author, writer on cultural policy: www.haypress.co.uk
• Charles Landry, UK : writer, researcher, lecturer in intercultural city, creative city and related subject areas : http://charleslandry.com/blog/
• Phill Wood, UK: public speaker, urban therapist, researcher, inspires cities and is inspired by them: http://philwood.eu/
• Ruth Chirchil Dower, Earlyarts Blog, UK: http://www.earlyarts.co.uk/blog/latest
• Derek Sivers: great entrepreneur and author on entrepreneurship: http://sivers.org/
• Michael Kaiser, President of John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts: Video series on fundraising, marketing, corporate donors, mission statement and much more: http://am.artsmanager.org/Video/Pages/Video.aspx
• Michael Kaiser’s blog: http://am.artsmanager.org/kcblogs/default.aspx
• Arts Administration blog, University of Oregon: http://aaablogs.uoregon.edu/aad/
• Arts Blog of the Americans for the Arts: topics related to arts education, arts marketing, leaderhip in the cultural sector and much more: http://blog.artsusa.org/tag/arts-administration/
• Audience development specialists blog: http://audiencedevelopment.wordpress.com/tag/arts-management/
• Canada Council for the Arts blog: http://canadacouncil.ca/council/blog
• Technology in the Arts blog: http://www.technologyinthearts.org/
• Culture360: stimulate the cultural engagement between Asia and Europe: Cultural management blog: http://culture360.org/tag/cultural-management/
• Cultural policy blog by Ben Eltham, Australia: http://culturalpolicyreform.wordpress.com/
• International cultural policy collaborative blog: http://internationalculturalpolicy.wordpress.com/
• Forum for the Future blog: inspiring new thinking for a sustainable future: http://www.forumforthefuture.org/blogs
• Lisa Canning blog on Entrepreneurship in the arts: http://blog.entrepreneurthearts.com/
• Global Center for Cultural Entrepreneurship blog: http://culturalentrepreneur.org/blog/
• Arts Marketing blog: http://arts-marketing.blogspot.ca/
• Culturefighters blog: http://www.culturefighter.eu

Please, send me the url of your blogs related to cultural policy, arts management marketing in the arts, arts entrepreneurship: let’s learn by sharing and make a link-campaign between different blogging spaces for a higher visibility online!