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Uh, Jennifer, I’m 45 and too busy to be bored

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From your Chicago Sun-Times columnist, Jennifer Hunter

But Sree Sreenivasan, new media professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, says the effectiveness of Web sites and blogs as political tools may only go so far: “It’s still a small percentage of people using these technologies.”

Most are young and what Sreenivasan terms “early adaptors.” And, as he concludes, the impact of young voters “is notoriously hard to predict.” It was thought they were going to turn out in big numbers in 2004 but that didn’t happen.

In the end, who has time to blog? After reading four newspapers each day and my e-mails and doing my work, I’ve had it. Blogging remains a luxury for the young — or the bored.

Bonus question of the day: How old are you?

Secondary bonus question of the day: Are you bored?

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:17 pm

Comments

  1. 29, so where does that put me? And am I bored? Maybe. More like procrastinating. Err, umm, researching.

    Comment by A loyal reader Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:20 pm

  2. 35, not bored.

    Comment by Fire Ron Guenther Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:31 pm

  3. 59 and don’t have time to read four newspapers…

    Comment by Just Wonderin' Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:36 pm

  4. 44, not bored at all - my work has lots of 2-3 minute gaps where I’m waiting for something, so I keep a browser window open all the time.

    Comment by Ken in Aurora Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:37 pm

  5. am 36, and not bored a bit.

    Comment by a regular Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:44 pm

  6. I am 24, for a bit longer, and I am not particularly bored at all. I wish I had the time to be bored.

    Comment by RMW Stanford Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:46 pm

  7. 22, not bored.

    I’m a huge fan of microblogging (Twitter, del.icio.us).

    Comment by Kiyoshi Martinez Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:50 pm

  8. Close to 60 not bored at all….read way more than four papers (most on here, but also WSJ online, industry paper on line etc)

    Comment by You can teach an old dog new tricks. Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:51 pm

  9. 37 and not bored. Just avoiding work.

    Comment by S. Illinois Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:55 pm

  10. I’m somewhere between 30 and 40 — i.e. “not young” — and I’m reminded of my father’s wisdom: If think you’re bored, you’re probably boring.

    And I’m not boring.

    – SCAM

    Comment by so-called "Austin Mayor" Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 12:57 pm

  11. Over 50 and only bored when social conversations consist only of either sports or fashion. Wait, sports fashions could be the worst.

    Comment by i d Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:02 pm

  12. I’m 47, rather busy (not bored anyway) and I have a blog! There must be something wrong with me.

    Comment by Dave Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:06 pm

  13. 46 w/2 jobs, no time to be bored.

    Comment by He makes Ryan look like a saint Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:11 pm

  14. 23 — not bored, just eating lunch at my desk and catching up on Illinois

    Comment by Rushmore Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:20 pm

  15. 29 and definately not bored.

    Comment by Squideshi Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:23 pm

  16. Where’s “bored now”? ;)

    He may fit the “bored” tag, but (no offense, b.n.) not the “young” tag. (Though he does have that young-at-heart vibe going on.)

    I’m mid-30s and have no time to be bored.

    Blog-pimping alert: I wrote about Ms. Hunter’s column yesterday after reading about it at Daily Kos.

    Rich, feel free to delete if you don’t want the blatant self-promotion in comments. ;)

    Comment by Rob_N Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:27 pm

  17. 32, and I don’t have time to be bored, let alone read four newspapers’ worth of repetitive, 24-hour-old news.

    Comment by IlliniPundit Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:29 pm

  18. jennifer hunter is the youngest old person on an editorial board. i have two anonymous blogs and am hardly bored, i am almost too busy for work. and, i am 31 and have a family. who are these researchers?

    Comment by anon Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:46 pm

  19. NO time to be bored…

    Comment by Siyotanka Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:48 pm

  20. 25, too busy to read a newspaper (old news) or focus my time on talk radio.

    Comment by shoo Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:50 pm

  21. Egads, 2nd oldest! 48 (and very grateful for Ju’s wondering!)

    Am I bored? No, too busy at work, too busy after with workout, more work (ugh) and my daughters. Not as much time for net as i’d like, either :)

    Comment by Pat collins Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:51 pm

  22. opps…58…

    Comment by Siyotanka Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 1:51 pm

  23. the new 30 (i.e., 50), not bored

    Comment by corvax Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:00 pm

  24. 26– procrastinating, not bored.

    Comment by CubbieBlue Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:07 pm

  25. 52, have a full-time job, have a full-time blog, have a life. Sometimes bored, but then who isn’t?

    Comment by Ferdy Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:09 pm

  26. 64, not bored but certainly curmudgeonly. BILL, rescue me, surely you are the senior here.

    Comment by A Citizen Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:10 pm

  27. Sorry A,
    Im 56 and not all that bored although it is a little slow today.

    Comment by Bill Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:21 pm

  28. 23 and i read 5 papers and write 2 blogs(online) per day. Washington Post, NY Times, Chicago Tribune, Denver Post, Chicago Sun Times…

    Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:25 pm

  29. Thanks, Bill. Damn ! Rich, what kinda retirement program have you in place ? How close to qualifying might I be ?

    Comment by A Citizen Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:26 pm

  30. heh. this question was just for me, right?

    46. i’m incredibly BORING, but hardly bored. geez, i haven’t even figured out the streets and direction in chicago yet, let alone seen 6 of the 7 wonders of illinois. plus, i gotta admit, every time i’m on lake shore drive, i keep trying to figure out why my wife promised me i could surf lake michigan! gotta hurry, any minute now i will be returned to my alternate reality…

    Comment by bored now Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:27 pm

  31. 29. I also know that many of my most regular readers are reporters who somehow find the time to visit.

    Comment by Will Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:36 pm

  32. 24, Never bored

    Comment by JBC Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:38 pm

  33. I’m somewhere between Jack Benny and Social Security but closer to SS. I’m technologically challengted but most definitely NOT bored. I can find most of the blogs I want to read but for the life of me can’t figure out where to go to vote for Paris Hilton to go to jail. Blogs are not going away and they will get much stronger as the computer generation continues to age (is that Gen X, Y or Z).

    Comment by Little Egypt Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:42 pm

  34. 59 and as soon as I can figure out what to name it, I’ll start my blog. (It’s a new year’s resolution and I do tend to keep them.)

    Comment by RBD Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:50 pm

  35. 41.

    “Bored” is not the right word.

    “Trying to clear my head between analyzing complex and at times, very boring documents” is more accurate. I look at the blogs so that I can look at the documents that I review with somewhat fresh eyes.

    Comment by Skeeter Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 2:51 pm

  36. I’m 38. Not bored, just like to take a break for a few minutes a day and catch up on some politics.

    Comment by HoosierDaddy Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 3:21 pm

  37. Rich, make the next question of the day “What title should we give RBD’s forthcoming blog?”…

    Comment by Rob_N Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 3:24 pm

  38. mid 20s and yeah bored but I have things to share with the world.

    Comment by Levois Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 3:43 pm

  39. 45. And too busy to be bored either.

    Comment by John Ruberry Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 3:45 pm

  40. I’m 42…and yes, I’m bored with blogs.

    Comment by Curt Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 3:49 pm

  41. 47. Not bored. Can’t get depth of political news from newspapers. Blogs are the only way to go.

    Comment by Way Northsider Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 3:50 pm

  42. 53 and bored.

    Comment by Shelbyville Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 4:43 pm

  43. Is there any research supporting Sreenivasan’s claims about blogging?

    How corroded have the American elites become–an being a professor at an Ivy League school in NYC is pretty elite–that one could speak about an area under their expertise without having research to back-up their claims?

    Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 4:44 pm

  44. so bored that i just heard the capital fax blog cited on npr’s atc, report about robo calls. they ran a piece of an anti-duckworth robo call rich posted…

    Comment by bored now Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 4:46 pm

  45. That’s Jennifer Hunter speculating. Sorry….

    Whatever….

    Columnists feel threatened by bloggers because bloggers threaten their career paths and cushy gigs.

    Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 4:46 pm

  46. BTW, if the people who read blogs merely “have too much time on their hands” doesn’t this logic also apply to people who read newspapers?

    If the only appropriate use of time is making money, organized religion, family, recreation and non-political charity work, doesn’t that imply newspaper readers are just a bunch of overpaid, undertaxed people that need to spend more time on things that are truly important?

    Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 4:50 pm

  47. Am I really the oldest reading this at 64.8+ years of age?

    Comment by Cal Skinner Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 5:13 pm

  48. 65 and not bored. Never have been and never will be.

    Comment by Justice Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 5:20 pm

  49. 51 and definitely not bored.

    Comment by Arthur Andersen Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 6:42 pm

  50. 26. Reading her column made me feel bored. Does that count?

    Comment by Bill S. Preston, Esq. Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 6:46 pm

  51. 54 and never bored.

    Comment by LG Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 7:08 pm

  52. 42 and also never bored.

    Comment by 32nd Ward Roscoe Village Resident Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 7:49 pm

  53. 25…and this is the only blog I read. I would hardly call it out of boredom, either. You’ve got some great, informative stuff on here Rich.

    Comment by NI80 Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 7:54 pm

  54. 38, busy, busy, busy!

    Comment by Bobby Hicks Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 8:14 pm

  55. 50 and having too much fun to be bored.

    Comment by Huh? Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 8:24 pm

  56. Well, Google says the average blog is read by one person… Obviously, CapFax is not your average blog…

    http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2006/11/30/the-govs-hear-from-google/

    Comment by Gadfly Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 8:37 pm

  57. 32 and not bored, just too busy to read newspapers and looking for a quicker way to get caught up on the news of the day, rather than the news of yesterday.

    Comment by Jason Barickman Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 9:21 pm

  58. 37 and not board…

    Still not OneOldMan

    Comment by OneManBlog Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 9:36 pm

  59. 33 and not bored

    Comment by Policy Wonk Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 9:38 pm

  60. 29 and never bored! I’m way too busy for that.

    Comment by Bridget Dooley Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 9:40 pm

  61. I am 68+ and I am not bored. I read many papers onlline. I love this blog because there is so much about local politics. Even though I am retired, I have plenty to keep me busy and through newspapers online, keep me informed. In fact I am able to read newspapers from a lot of other areas online.

    Comment by irishmom07 Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 10:35 pm

  62. Did I say 64? My goodness there goes my dyslexia again, I meant 46, Heh Heh Heh! Never mind about the retirement package Rich, I must have had a junior moment. There sure are some old, and some very young folks on here.

    Comment by A Citizen Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 10:49 pm

  63. 45 next month, finally finishing my Bachelor’s of Business, eBusiness next week. Going to start a Master’s as soon as I can, 6 year in kindergarten, 12 year old in gifted program, 16 year old special needs daughter. Definitely NOT bored.

    Comment by kimsch Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 11:05 pm

  64. At 37, I’m not bored, just desperate for attention and apparently a late-blooming “early adaptor.” Still, a name like Sree Sreenivasan would be really cool. A gig at the Columbia U. School of J. would be pretty sweet too. But I need s’more data Sree. I mean sure, a small percentage of sincere and wonky people use “these technologies” toward civic ends, but it’s also true that only a small percentage of sincere and civic folks actually, ummm, vote. It’s funny because since the print and broadcast media can’t seem to generate more civic participation, it is automatically assumed that the Internet is supposed to be a panacea to cure our collective apathy, young, old or moderately indifferent.

    Anyways Mr. Miller, you shouldn’t have taken the bait by taking offense at Ms. Hunter’s quippy conclusion. I doubt you and many of the other bloggy wonks who follow local or national politics closely were meant to be included in the civic continuum. She and Sree were centered on youthful bloggers, afterall, not us aging ones. We are a different demographic altogether.

    Vote (blog/sing) or Die!
    Saluki Yay-hoo

    Comment by Saluki Yay-hoo Tuesday, May 8, 07 @ 11:59 pm

  65. Uh, 40, busier than ever and rarely bored. Not boring either, by most standards. Just working too much these days when not ushering the teen to sporting events.

    Comment by Tessa Wednesday, May 9, 07 @ 6:41 am

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