Blogging Is Not Yet Dead In 2024

"Is blogging dead?" In the ever-evolving landscape of content marketing, where sceptics argue that social media dominance and the rise of video content will erase the need for blogs, you wouldn’t be alone in asking this question.

Before answering, let us take a look at the beginning of blogging. It can be traced to the digital era starting as early as the early 90s. Long before "blogging" was even an idea, communities were already taking shape with Usenet and online services providing a platform for people to get connected.

Jorn Barger was the innovator who first coined "weblog" in 1997, and Peter Merholz made waves by taking that term further when he shortened it to 'blog', which became widely used.

Taking things even a step further, Ev Williams created an entire lifestyle centered around blogging with his service, Blogger. He also popularized the terms: "blog" and "Blogger."

So blogs have been around for 30 years. Is it dead?

Short answer: no. A recent survey found that over 60 percent of all internet users read blogs, while another found that 77 percent of internet users read blogs daily. That’s over 4 billion readers. And it’s not just older internet users who are into blogs: Statista found that the percentage of young people in the UK reading blogs has grown significantly since 2010. Considering 60 percent of Gen Z think a brand’s digital first impressions are more important than in-person ones, it’s clear blog posts play a vital role in perception.

One of the reasons why it’s likely they will be around for another three decades: the Lindy Effect.

The Lindy Effect is a concept that states that the future life expectancy of some non-perishable items is directly proportional to their current age.

The term Lindy originated from an article written by Albert Goldman in The New Republic in 1964 titled "Lindy’s Law". The term refers to a delicatessen in New York called Lindy’s, which was a popular gathering spot for comedians. They met there daily to discuss their experiences and analyze the recent developments in show business.

But it was Benoit Mandelbrot and Nassim Taleb who developed the idea into what it is now.

Mandelbrot and Taleb argue that a lifespan can be extended with each passing day since it has already survived past its expected lifespan.