{"id":329,"date":"2013-04-22T20:17:00","date_gmt":"2013-04-23T01:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/in-my-defenseand-other-thoughts\/"},"modified":"2013-07-22T17:52:12","modified_gmt":"2013-07-22T22:52:12","slug":"in-my-defenseand-other-thoughts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/in-my-defenseand-other-thoughts\/","title":{"rendered":"In My Defense…And Other Thoughts"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"judgement\"<\/strong>This is in response to a post entitled RootsTech 2013 \u2013 The Nitpicker\u2019s Critique, Part 2<\/a>, written by Banai Feldstein early last week.\u00a0 While I agree with some of Banai\u2019s points, I was a little hurt by the comments made about me specifically.\u00a0 I\u2019d like to take this opportunity to defend myself, defend the other bloggers and give everyone a glimpse of the Official Blogger\u2019s responsibilities as I understand them and where some improvements could be made; and share some other thoughts on such a program.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In My Defense<\/strong><\/p>\n

Over the last few months, I have had to learn to adjust to a new way of life because of some serious health issues.\u00a0 One of those adjustments has been \u201cletting go\u201d of the things that stress me out since stress is not good for my health (nor anyone\u2019s really!) and learn to not take things personally.\u00a0 And on top of the health issues, I am also dealing with other personal crises, so I REALLY should be letting go\u2026but you know what?\u00a0 I am beyond stressed right now and am in a very fragile emotional state as it is, and I don\u2019t like it when someone calls me out on something without having their facts straight.\u00a0 As a researcher, this really bothers me, since we\u2019re not supposed to jump to conclusions without a thorough investigation.\u00a0 So I\u2019d like to defend the statement made against me.<\/p>\n

This is what Banai stated in her blog:<\/p>\n

Julie Cahill Tarr, GenBlog, uses a different search on her Blogger blog, but if it\u2019s to be trusted, she hasn\u2019t mentioned RootsTech since posting tips for attending before the conference and listings about the streaming sessions.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I beg to differ.<\/p>\n

First, yes, I do use a different search, but Banai had three other options if she didn\u2019t \u201ctrust\u201d the search.\u00a0 One, I use labels (in Blogger)and those can be found by clicking the Topics tab in my main menu, or the \u201cPosts by Topic\u201d link under the heading \u201cTable of Contents\u201d RIGHT ABOVE the search box!\u00a0 Second, once she found a post, she could have easily clicked on the label link from the post.\u00a0 Third, if she prefers Google, she could have done an advanced Google search on my website specifically.\u00a0 Regardless, when I did a search on RootsTech<\/em> for my blog, the first three were for 2013 and wouldn\u2019t ya know, one of them was a recap\u2026I certainly didn\u2019t write a recap before the conference!<\/p>\n

\"searchresults\"<\/p>\n

Perhaps it\u2019s because I\u2019m a nobody compared the most of the other bloggers, who have been around the genealogy world much longer than I, so I didn\u2019t warrant a thorough investigation. Heck, I didn\u2019t even warrant a link to my blog like the others! Just a complaint that I didn\u2019t do my job, which by the way, I did, and received no perks this year like the other bloggers. Yes, that\u2019s right, I, like Lorine<\/a>, did not attend the conference this year and instead participated remotely.\u00a0 I certainly didn\u2019t receive a $99 check in lieu of the complimentary registration, nor did I receive a $25 gift card to Applebee\u2019s for my own (and what would have been a very lonely) Official Bloggers Dinner, nor did I receive the goodie bag. Perks or not, I\u2019d still do it out of the kindness of my heart, because blogging about genealogy is what I do.\u00a0 I promote all sorts of events, including those I am unable to attend, because it may be of interest to my readers.<\/p>\n

For the record, below are the posts I did for the 2013 conference across both of my blogs.\u00a0 Granted, it\u2019s not as much as some of the \u201cofficial\u201d bloggers, or even \u201cnon-official\u201d bloggers, but I do my part.\u00a0 And I usually try to add a little something to the \u201cpress release\u201d type posts that adds some value to my readers, for example, the post about the keynote speakers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
09\/24\/12<\/td>\nHow Can You Save $90 on RootsTech 2013 Conference Registrations? Read This Post!!<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
01\/07\/13<\/td>\nWriting-Related Presentations at RootsTech 2013<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
01\/24\/13<\/td>\nWin a Free Registration to RootsTech 2013 in Salt Lake City<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
01\/28\/13<\/td>\nMay I Have the Envelope, Please?<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
02\/01\/13<\/td>\nKick Off RootsTech 2013 at the Keynote Session on Thursday, March 21<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
02\/15\/13<\/td>\nRootsTech 2013 Early Bird Registration Extended Until Next Friday<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
02\/15\/13<\/td>\nStory@Home Instagram Photo Contest<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
03\/01\/13<\/td>\n11 Tips for Attending RootsTech 2013<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
03\/14\/13<\/td>\nCan\u2019t Attend RootsTech in Person? Attend From Home!<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
03\/21\/13<\/td>\nTell It Again \u2013 See the RootsTech Session Recording NOW<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
03\/27\/13<\/td>\nMy #RootsTech 2013 Recap<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

My gripe is really about the fact that Banai\u2019s complaints placed the focus on the individual bloggers, where it probably shouldn\u2019t have.\u00a0 Additionally, I don\u2019t appreciate the fact that I was mentioned in an unflattering way, when she didn\u2019t thoroughly do her homework (admittedly, and I quote:\u00a0 \u201cI tried not to spend too long analyzing all the official bloggers, so I did not verify that they all advertised leading up the conference\u2026.).\u00a0 Again, as a researcher, that bothers me.\u00a0 But enough about that, I rest my case.<\/p>\n

In Defense of All Official Bloggers<\/strong><\/p>\n

I would like to say something in defense of ALL Official Bloggers for RootsTech.\u00a0 Both years I\u2019ve participated, we were told ahead of time that we would be helping to promote the conference.\u00a0 The caveat is that we were also told we would receive \u201cregular story ideas and announcements\u201d in the months leading up to the conference.\u00a0 This was not a reality in either year I participated.\u00a0 For the 2013 conference, I believe I received four announcements between the \u201cofficial\u201d notification in September and the conference in March (which is more than I received last year).\u00a0 Also note, this year, I did not receive ANYTHING after the conference as I had last year, such as notification of the Developer Challenge winner (heck, I didn\u2019t even know who the contenders were, and the only reason I knew who won was because DearMYRTLE interviewed the winner<\/a>).\u00a0 In my opinion, this is a big fumble on the conference organizers\u2019 part., as some of us need a little reminder or inspiration to spread the word due to busy schedules or other obligations.\u00a0 And it\u2019s hard to report on and\/or promote something when you don\u2019t know anything!\u00a0 I would have certainly blogged more if I knew what was going on, but I may as well have been a regular person on the outside looking in.\u00a0 That\u2019s something the conference organizers need to improve if they intend to keep the Official Blogger program going (or change it up a bot, see Other Thoughts below).<\/p>\n

Additionally, as others have already stated, there has never been any sort of expectation set.\u00a0 Are we obligated to post every announcement we receive?\u00a0 In order to take advantage of the perks, must we post twice a month before the conference, blog each day of the conference, and post stuff after the conference?\u00a0 Beats me.\u00a0 If there are such expectations, they certainly weren\u2019t shared with me, and from the sounds of it, not with the other bloggers either.\u00a0 While some of the bloggers welcomed spelled-out expectations, I actually think that\u2019s a bit much\u2026who has time to monitor all of that?\u00a0 Oops, I missed my two-post quota for the month, I just forfeited my complimentary registration\u2026crap!<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the thing. Being a \u201cgood\u201d official blogger takes some work. There are some who do a spectacular job and dedicate a lot of time. Most of us do what we can to help promote the conference beforehand, introduce people to the event during, and garner future interest with posts after the conference. It is what it is.\u00a0 Is there room for improvement?\u00a0 Of course, but I think it starts with the conference organizers providing the Official Bloggers with more information, consistently, from the time the bloggers are selected through the end of the conference.<\/p>\n

Other Thoughts<\/strong><\/p>\n

If I understand correctly, one of Banai\u2019s frustrations was the shear number of Official Bloggers this year. In my opinion, it was<\/em> ridiculous! And some of them weren\u2019t even \u201cofficial\u201d for very long. I always linked to the Official Blogger page in my posts (on the Official Blogger image in the post) and it wasn\u2019t until right before the conference that I noticed a huge addition to the original 15 or so bloggers. I\u2019d never heard of any of these people, and I just assumed that they were somehow related to the Story@Home portion that was added to RootsTech, but I must admit, I never looked into it any further, so don\u2019t take my word for it\u2026I really have no idea where they came from or who they are.<\/p>\n

Recently, Caroline Pointer mentioned in a post about NGS that she would prefer the \u201cofficial blogger\u201d role be expanded to somehow include those who use other forms of social media, and I have to say, I loved that idea.\u00a0 In her March 25th post<\/a>, Caroline stated:<\/p>\n

I’m not just a genealogy blogger, but a genealogist who utilizes social media overall to get my word out, and that tends to mean I don’t blog as much as others do which was one of the first questions that was asked on the NGS Conference Official Blogger application. I like meeting people on the platform of their choice. In fact, it’s why I advocate that there be Social Media Representatives at conferences and not Official Bloggers.<\/strong> [emphasis her own]<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What a novel idea!\u00a0 When I was at RootsTech in 2012, I knew blogging was not going to happen\u2026long hours at the conference, networking, and working at the FHL, left no time for blogging during the conference.\u00a0 But I did manage to tweet a little bit about the sessions I was attending.\u00a0 As I mentioned earlier, I did not attend this year, and was considered a \u201cremote\u201d Official Blogger.\u00a0 I attended most of the sessions that were streamed live, I tweeted during them (sharing thoughts, promoting the speakers, promoting the conference, informing people of the live streaming sessions, etc.), and even wrote blog posts about some of them.<\/p>\n

I am a relative newbie to the national conference scene, so I want to take in as much as I can.\u00a0 I want to think about what a speaker is saying and how it applies to my research, not \u201chmm, how should I report on this session in my blog.\u201d\u00a0 In other words, I want to think as a genealogist, not as a reporter.\u00a0 For me, it takes away from the educational experience that I am shelling out money to attend.\u00a0 It\u2019s not that I don\u2019t want to share what I learn, but I do this through\u00a0 my blog in a more practical application (usually by a real research example or a how-to post) after I apply what I\u2019ve learned to my own genealogy, which could be months after a conference.\u00a0 So I definitely lack in the \u201cduring\u201d and \u201cafter\u201d department of the Official Blogger \u201cduties.\u201d\u00a0 And if that makes me a bad Official Blogger, so be it.\u00a0 And if the RootsTech organizers don\u2019t like how I approach my Official Blogger duties, or don\u2019t like some of the suggestions I\u2019ve offered in this post, then they have every right not to ask me to be an Official Blogger\u2026and I\u2019m okay with that.<\/p>\n

A Final Thought<\/strong><\/p>\n

I hope that Banai doesn\u2019t take my rebuttal as any sort of personal attack.\u00a0 I was a little hurt by her personal comment about me, but not angry.\u00a0 More disappointed than anything about the admitted lack of thoroughness on her part and then posting unflattering comments based on the incomplete research.<\/p>\n

I do understand her point, I think, which unfortunately was buried among the clutter of calling out the individual bloggers.\u00a0 If I understand the underlying message she\u2019s trying to convey, it\u2019s that other bloggers, even those with less \u201ctraffic\u201d are just as capable of being an Official Blogger and the pool of the Official Bloggers could be be more diverse, which would help to reach even more people\u2026totally agree!\u00a0 I also applaud her bravery for Part 1 of the post<\/a>, which discussed several issues of RootsTech 2013 in general\u2026even though I wasn\u2019t there this year, I\u2019m betting I would have echoed her complaints.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is in response to a post entitled RootsTech 2013 \u2013 The Nitpicker\u2019s Critique, Part 2, written by Banai Feldstein early last week.\u00a0 While I agree with some of Banai\u2019s points, I was a little hurt by the comments made about me specifically.\u00a0 I\u2019d like […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-329","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-genblog","cat-25-id"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3HcLI-5j","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=329"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4590,"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329\/revisions\/4590"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=329"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=329"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/genealogy.julietarr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=329"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}