MY TOUR DE FRANCE OF BLOGGERS
The web has been invaded by blogs. Many of them disappear every day for lack of visitors, but some enjoy exceptional visibility and popularity, making them quite a phenomenon in contemporary society. They are on the fringes of traditional media but compete with them increasingly frequently and have become inescapable in several fields, be it fashion, cooking or even social or political commentary. They herald a complete shift in our social make-up.
But we don’t really know who bloggers are. Although a few have become genuinely famous in the public sphere, the vast majority remain anonymous, even though their blogs are visited by tens of thousands of internet surfers every day. Whether they give pseudonyms or operate under their real names, they are not seen or heard – or only very little – on television or the radio.
Anna Sam is one of the rare few who found the adventure of blogging led to emerge from the shadows on the internet. Qualified with a further diploma in literature and working on a supermarket check-out, she wrote a very popular blog describing her daily experience of mass marketing. This was followed by the publication of a book, Checkout: A Life on the Tills, which was a renowned success and translated into 20 foreign languages.
Anna Sam decided to try to identify bloggers, members of a separate and increasingly influential community, to find out who they are, how they manage their blogging which they often do on top of “real” jobs, how notoriety on the web has changed their lives, etc.
In fifteen amusing, sharply drawn portraits, Anna Sam sketches out the landscape of the French blogosphere, never faltering in her outspokenness and humour. The author of Checkout: A Life on the Tills, which was a real publishing phenomenon, has the advantage of credibility in the field of the internet, and this makes her the ideal candidate for this project, an unusual Tour de France that has never been undertaken before.
Anna Sam is 30, she holds a DEA (higher diploma) in Modern French Language and Literature. She worked on the tills of a major outlet for several years. She wrote a very popular blog of her experience which went on to become a successful book, Checkout: A Life on the Tills (Stock, 2008), which sold more than 90,000 copies in France. She is also the author of Conseils d’amie à la clientele (Stock, 2009). She has now gone over to the other side and works in training in mass marketing.
Les blogs ont envahi le web. Beaucoup disparaissent chaque jour faute de visiteurs, mais certains jouissent d’une visibilité et d’une fréquentation exceptionnelles qui en font un véritable phénomène de société. En marge des médias traditionnels, les concurrençant de plus en plus souvent, ils sont devenus incontournables dans plusieurs domaines, que ce soit la mode, la cuisine ou même la chronique sociale ou politique. C’est un changement complet dans le tissu social qu’ils indiquent..
Mais on ne sait pas vraiment qui sont les blogueuses et les blogueurs. Pour quelques-uns devenus réellement célèbres dans la sphère publique, l’immense majorité demeure anonyme alors qu’ils reçoivent sur leur blog la visite quotidienne de milliers d’internautes. Soit qu’ils n’indiquent qu’un pseudo, soit qu’ils apparaissent sous leur vrai nom, on ne les voit pas, on ne les entend pas ou peu à la télé ou à la radio.
Anna Sam fait partie des rares que l’aventure du blog a conduit à sortir de l’ombre du web. Titulaire d’un DEA de Lettres et travaillant comme caissière dans un hypermarché, elle a tenu un blog très fréquenté racontant son expérience quotidienne de la grande distribution. S’en est suivi la publication d’un livre, Les tribulations d’une caissière, qui fut un succès.
Anna Sam a eu l’idée de partir à la découverte des blogueurs, cette communauté à part et de plus en plus influente, pour savoir qui ils sont, comment ils gèrent leur activité qui s’ajoute souvent à leur « vrai » métier, comment la notoriété sur le web a transformé leur vie, etc.
En une série de portraits vifs et enjoués, elle nous emmène dans un tour de France insolite, jamais entrepris.
L'auteur
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