State of the library and information science blogosphere after social networks boom: A metric approach

• Published in: Library & information science research 2011-04, Vol.33 (2), p.168-174
• Main Authors: Torres-Salinas, Daniel, Cabezas-Clavijo, Álvaro, Ruiz-Pérez, Rafael, López-Cózar, Emilio Delgado
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis; Exact sciences and technology; Information and communication sciences; Information science. Documentation; Library and information science; Library and information science. General aspects; Sciences and techniques of general use; Social networks; Use and user studies. Information needs; Web logs
• ISSN: 0740-8188; 1873-1848
• DOI: 10.1016/j.lisr.2010.08.001

A metric analysis of blogs on library and information science (LIS) between November 2006 and June 2009 indexed on the Libworm search engine characterizes the community's behavior quantitatively. An analysis of 1108 personal and corporate blogs with a total of 275,103 posts is used to calculate survival rate, production (number of posts published), and visibility via such indicators as links received, Technorati authority, and Google's PagePank. Over the study period, there was a 52% decrease in the number of active blogs. Despite the drop in production over this period, the average number of posts per blog remained constant (14 per month). The most representative blogs in the discipline are identified. The emergence of such platforms as Facebook and Twitter seems to have meant that both personal and corporate blogs have lost some of their prominence. ► A metric analysis of blogs on library and information science is performed. ► Results show a 52% decrease in the number of active blogs over a 4-year time span. ► The average number of posts per blog remained constant during this time period. ► Blogs have lost a great deal of their prominence after social networks boom.