The Sunday Telegraph waxes lyrical, it is gushingly in awe of Nadine Dorries’ blog, with its frank shoot-from-the hip style of writing. She is dubbed "Bridget Jones MP". This is what the article says:
Dorries has also become something of a new-media superstar. Her blog is cult reading among MPs from all parties and her appearances on the internet television channel 18 Doughty Street are often the talk of Westminster.
Nadine’s challenging reply on her blog today is:
If I am the Westminster parallel to Bridget, does this mean a Mr Darcy is on the horizon? If Mr Darcy only has the photograph from the Sunday Telegraph by which to find me he wil be looking for a female MP who resembles a zombie with lank hair, glazed eyes, a grey fish face and an oversized hand growing out of her ear.
Yes, we all hope Nadine will find her Mr Darcy one day. Nadine’s blog is very amusing and a great read. However, in my opinion, it has stopped being a blog as it no longer accepts comments. It is now an online daily diary. A blog must allow readers to comment and be interactive, it facilitates two-way communication which is crucial for MPs. This was the explanation Nadine gave:
Please don’t send any more comments - It’s a time thing, I don’t have any.
I have to rely on the patience of others to read and post the comments for me. I am never in front of a computer for more than a couple of minutes at a time and this has now made reading the comments before they are posted impossible.
Knowing that there are comments on my site which I may not even have had time to see, makes me uncomfortable.
If any one wants to contact me you can still do so via the email facility on the home page.
My response is that if Nadine was serious about writing a blog to interact with constituents and others about political issues - I remember her brilliant, provocative post about a new travellers’ site in her constituency - then she should pencil in 10 minutes in her diary to observe the views of others. It can be done, if she genuinely wants to listen and respond. Surely she is glued to her Blackberry throughout the day which provides access to her blog, and these can/or soon will be used in the House too.
Why does Nadine invite people to email her, rather than post interactive comments? Why is one more important than the other if they are based on issues she has raised for discussion? Nadine does not need to respond to all the comments, I agree this is a strain, but a dialogue can still take place between her readers, and she can check them out when she has five minutes.
Don’t forget, women are the best jugglers of all when it comes to fitting 30 hours work into a 24 hour day.
Now that Nadine’s blog has brought her this fame, I feel it is unfair to switch off comments, which provides the blood, the heart and soul behind it. I hope she reconsiders.
Curly feels let down too, I wonder how many other bloggers do as well.
