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A warblog is a weblog devoted mostly or wholly to covering news events concerning an ongoing war. Warblogs first appeared during the 2001 U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, and attained maturity during the U.S.'s 2003 invasion of Iraq. While some warblogs arise out of and are directly limited in their coverage to the war in question, others expand their coverage to related political, social and cultural issues and continue commentating beyond the end of the war. Likewise, blogs that ordinarily cover non-war issues may dedicate their coverage during a time of war to the conflict, with some reverting to their previous missions at the end of the war, and others retaining their new character.
The term was coined by Matt Welch, who launched his warblog on September 17, 2001. Warblogging was popularized by Glenn Reynolds, whose Instapundit has become one of the most popular political blogs on the web.
Other prominent warblogs include Command Post, Little Green Footballs, Belmont Club, Steven Den Beste and Andrew Sullivan, all of which existed before September 11, but who made the war on terror their primary focus afterwards.
New warblogs have arisen since the end of combat operations, such as The Adventures of Chester, written by a former Marine officer.
The term "warblog" has become something of an anachronism--which would seem to be ironic, but speaks to the speed with which things change in the world of the Internet. Most blogs that gained popularity as "warblogs" have far expanded their focus to politics and general news. Many of these blogs became a focus of attention for frequently updated information related to the election during the 2004 campaign.
See also
External links
- Command Post (http://www.command-post.org/) Blog collective with up-to-the-minute commentary
- Little Green Footballs (http://www.littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/)
- Belmont Club (http://belmontclub.blogspot.com/) Historical commentary
- Where is Raed? (http://dear_raed.blogspot.com/)
- Steven Den Beste (http://www.denbeste.nu)
- Andrew Sullivan (http://www.andrewsullivan.com)
- Matt Welch, first post (http://mattwelch.com/archives/week_2001_09_16.html#002533)
- The Adventures of Chester (http://adventuresofchester.blogspot.com/) Former Marine officer who participated in Iraqi campaign offers insight on the war
- Global Guerrillas (http://globalguerrillas.typepad.com/globalguerrillas/) Former clandestine special ops officer who participated in counter-terrorist operations provides insight on the new war.
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