CNN honours bloggers at international conference

For the first time ever, a major world media giant, CNN, has decided to award some of the world’s best blogs and bloggers at an international conference held in Durban, South Africa. The conference traditionally involves journalists based in Africa and associated with print publications, television and radio. But this year CNN’s conference organizers decided that it was time to extend the awards to those involved in the world of Web 2.0 journalism, and particularly in blogging. According to the media network, the growing prominence of corporate blogging is what convinced organizers that it was time to honour the continent’s best blogs.

A total of 12 countries are represented at the pan-African media conference. The conference focuses on a wide range of categories, covering the world of business, economics, tourism, sports, health-related issues, as well as the environment. One of the conference’s main innovations is the special workshop being organized that focuses on the digital media revolution, and Web 2.0 in particular.

Eben Greyling, who serves as the conference and award ceremony’s president, noted that the inclusion of blogs and bloggers was an innovative and forward-thinking move, as the world is presently faced with “an ever-changing technological and media landscape.” CNN’s managing director, Tony Maddox, confirmed this as well, and argued that his media organization has always kept its eyes and ears open to new developments in the world of digital journalism. The fact this African conference is placing such a strong emphasis on blogging shows that the blogosphere has changed the media landscape not only in the Western world, but throughout the globe.