tand why Black bloggers might be overlooked. But, the point of creating The AfroSpear was so that we can learn from one another. As such, I propose to publish a monthly list of the Top Ten Black Bloggers.The only qualification is that the blogger needs to be of African descent. The blogger does not have to be a member of The AfroSpear or the Afrosphere Bloggers Association. Of course, we invite all Black bloggers to join either (or both) of those fledging organizations. These Top Ten Black Bloggers are influential role models for the rest of us out here in the afrosphere.
The Technorati authority and rank numbers are shown in parenthesis. The authority indicates the number of blogs that are linked to this blogger over the past six months. The rank number indicates how many blogs are between the person listed and the #1 ranked blog in the world. Here are the Top Ten Black Bloggers for September 2007.
- Paula Mooney: Paula Mooney’s Tips (Authority: 897 / Rank: 2,717) - Paula is a powerful source of ideas for any blogger looking to increase their visitor traffic. She is very enthusiastic about the power of blogging. Recently, she introduced a new blog on fantasy football along with her husband. I guess it's true what they say, 'the family that blogs together stays together'!
- Sokari Ekine: Black Looks (607/ 5,007) - This blog began in June 2004. It is primarily about issues that impact our brothers and sisters in Africa. Sokari is currently in South Africa. Her posts cover a range of issues such as gender violence, racism, sexuality, HIV/AIDS and cancer. Black Looks is not for lightweights!
- Terrance Heath: Republic of T (528 / 6,604) - Terrance lays it out for you. His blog reflects his life experiences as a Black, gay, liberal, buddhist, vegetarian dad.
- Expat Jane: Where The Hell Am I? (348 / 11,575) - Jane provides the views of an American from sunny California who is a confirmed sapiosexual and now an expatriate in Seoul, South Korea. There is social and political commentary, music and entertainment that she loves or loathes and general silliness.
- Angry Black Woman: The Angry Black Woman (292 / 14,383) - Politics, Race, Gender, Sexuality, Anger - As the name suggests, she is a Black woman who occassionally gets angry. This blog allows her to call out all the foolishness on the Internet.
- Shark-Fu: Angry Black Bitch (279 / 15,151) - This blog began in February 2005. Shark-Fu uses this blog as an outlet for numerous rants about things that frustrate or infuriate her. I imagine that it must feel like therapy but cheaper.
- Wayne Bennett: The Field Negro (241 / 18,571) - Wayne is a practicing attorney in Philadelphia. He was born in Jamaica West Indies, however, he considers himself a citizen of the world. His blog is revolutionary in nature with no-holds barred commentary on the worlds of entertainment, sports, and politics. Don't tell anyone, but, this is my favorite blog in the world. Field is my role model as a blogger!
- Earl Dunovant: Prometheus 6 (234 / 19,269) - This website's tagline is All Respect, No Restraint. It is obvious that Bro. Dunovant is very respected in the blogosphere. He was a panelist on a Blogger Roundtable hosted by NPR a few weeks ago.
- Booker Rising: Booker Rising (208 / 22,081) - This blog was created in May 2004. It proclaims itself to be a media watchdog for Black moderates and conservatives, regardless of party affiliation. The blog works to counteract negativity, victimology, and defeatism, which are often thrust upon Black Americans by schools, the media, and so-called leaders.
- Malena Amusa: RaceWire (202 / 22,799) - Malena is a journalist who co-edits RaceWire.org, the blog of ColorLines Magazine that offers incisive opinion, stories, and news about the policies, trends, and events that impact racial justice and communities of color.
HONORABLE MENTION (11-25): Black In Business, Afro-Netizen, Too Sense, Slant Truth 2.0, Jack and Jill Politics, Young Black Professional Guide, Electronic Village, AfroSpear Think Tank, Having Read The Fine Print, Black Woman in Europe, African American Opinion and Social Networking Blog, Mirror on America, Africabeat, Why Black Women Are Angry and African American Political Pundit.
Our rankings lean heavily on the Technorati Authority and Rank score for each blog. We figure that if your content is strong enough for others to link to ... that is a strong indicator of your influence. I am very open to hearing from you on other factors that should be considered in future monthly Top Ten Black Bloggers listings.
I was surprised to learn that I have not been following well over half of the bloggers on this list. I look forward to learning more about them over time.
I eagerly anticipate your comments on this list. For example, I went back and forth about whether the list should be of the blog or the blogger.
I look forward to hearing from you on this pilot episode of the Top Ten Black Bloggers list.
58 comments:
For what it's worth ... I have rankings for 73 Black bloggers at the moment. Feel free to ask me if your blog is on the list ... if not, I will add it!
peace, Villager
Thanks for the top ten shine.
I am honored!
Field - You've earned it brah'! I didn't even mention that you are a winner of the 2007 Black Weblog Award as well! Stay strong...
peace, Villager
Villager, Thanks for the honorable mention. I'm glad you decided to start this top ten listing.
Peace and blessings.
AAPP
AAPP - It was interesting to do the research for the initial listing of TOP TEN BLACK BLOGGERS. Did you see anyone on the list that surprised you?
peace, Villager
Congratulations for seeing a need to recognize the most influential Black blogs and then immediately acting on your perceptions and putting them into action.
Francis - Asante sana. Did you see any surprises on the list this month?
peace, Villager
Thanks for putting me on the list.
I didn't know there was a list, so I'm surprised!
Does that count?
Excellent acknowledgement and source of sites for us to pull from. Fortunately I already have most of these in my favs. I'll add the rest.
Thank you so much for this. I have not been able to blog for a while due to personal reasons but I hope I will soon have the strength and motivation to return. Well done on the new look EV - it is really looking good.
Bless
Sokari
Expat Jane - You earned your way on the list. And it gave you an excuse to visit the Electronic Village so there are a number of benefits of publishing this list (smile)! Stay strong and keep doing what you're doing!
Shelia - Thank you for adding me to your favs! and congrats on your BEST BLOG FOR SPORTS nomination. Well deserved. You are creating a unique niche for yourself. For what it's worth you are currently 62nd on the list of TOP BLACK BLOGGERS.
peace, Villager
Sokari - You have been blogging for a long time. You earned right to take a break whenever you want! Perhaps this public recognition of the respect and influence of Black Looks will help motivate you back to your blog again. In any case, thanx for the kind words on the new look of our village. We implemented the redesign last week...
peace, Villager
Thanks for pointing me to this list - I've now got a few new blogs to read.
If it's about the blog then it's automatically about the blogger. Great list. Glad to see my buddy Paula at the top of it.
I like the new look of your sight too man. It wasn't bad before but it is really sharp now. Keep up the good work.
I haven't been posting a lot lately and I know it's going to take the more recently activated URL more time to catch up with the old one as far as rankings are concerned, but what the heck, am I anywhere on the list of 73? How 'bout 74 or 75 for a well rounded list?
BloggingWriter - Thank you for the kind words. I see that you have two active blogs. I've added both of them to the list.
Martin - MartyBLOGS is currently #65 on the list. Thank you very much for your support and for the kind words about our recent redesign. You inspired me when you went to MartyBLOGS look & feel!
peace, Villager
Blogging Betty Boomer is Black!
We created a cartoon character for our latest blog launched Aug.13, 2007
http://www. Bloggingforboomers.com
We, the authors, Ray and Rosie Horner are both black and boomers.
Visit another site launched in may, http://www.hornerartworkshop.com.
We both you site is a superior site. Keep up the great work.
We like how you use your real estate and focus on stats.
Artcoach - We have added both of your blogs to the TOP BLACK BLOGS list. We now have 93 blogs on the list!
peace, Villager
I think this is a brillant idea - I know of all the top ten and you got it right when you put them up there. All are very unique, talented and great in their own way. I love reading their posts!
What’s up fam,
I am all about highlighting the work of Black bloggers and I am excited to already be working with many of the Top 10 and honorable mentions. I am excited at the opportunities for us to grow our numbers and work collaboratively. However, I am concerned that if we continue to use the same measure of success (in the form of Top Black Blogs) as more mainstream blogs, we risk creating a hierarchy that creates unintended side effects.
I propose (and perhaps I am giving myself a project) that collectively we move towards highlighting the work of lesser known blogs. The title of the unranked award could be, “The Best Black Blogs You Never Heard Of.” I do not think it is an either or proposition between highlighting blogs of low or high influence, but if it is true that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, what are we doing collectively to shore up Black blogs that need help?
Stay up fam,
Brandon Q.
The SuperSpade
Thanks for compiling a well rounded list and for the Honorable Mention!
Deidra - Thank you for the kind words. For what it's worth, your remarkable blog, Black and Missing, but not Forgotten is ranked #42 this month.
Brandon - Let me know how I can help u highlight those Black Blogs that we haven't heard of yet. Frankly, I hadn't heard or visited many of the 25 blogs highlighted in this post (smile). Anyhow, whatever, I can do to support your idea ... just let me know. For what it's worth, The SuperSlade is currently ranked #56 on my list.
Adrianne - Black Woman in Europe is currently ranked #22 on the list. However, what isn't factored into the list are those of you that won the 2007 Black Weblog Awards. I need to figure out how to give points for that as well as points for participation in The AfroSpear.
peace, Villager
For what it's worth, I'm black and my blog, Pam's House Blend has these Technorati stats:
Authority: 1,204
Rank: 1,656
Pam - I responded to you offline, however, I wanted you to know that I'm grateful that you have shared information about Pam's House Blend with us. Based on this new information, your blog is the new #1 Black Blog in the universe ... and will be relected as such when we issue the Oct 2007 rankings!
peace, Villager
Oh thank you!
Shark-Fu - No prob. You earned it with your work on ABB. I'm just glad that you found a reason to visit the Electronic Village. I hope that you find reason to come back in the future.
peace, Villager
Wow. Great work! And a great list too. I'm looking forward to checking out some of the bloggers I didn't know about.
One thing I noticed is that the NxE list is dominated by tech/web design/seo blogs. If I remember correctly, there were only four explicitly political blogs on the list. On the other hand, most of the blogs on your list are more political/justice oriented blogs. When I think about it, the only black tech bloggers I can think of are the Blackhacker (blackhacker.net) and the finalists for the Black Weblog Awards. I occassionaly blog on technology, but I wouldn't consider myself a tech blogger by any means. I also occasionally contribute at the Solidarity Design Network, but that's a group blog and the other two contributors are white, so I don't think it counts as a black blog per se. So my questions are: where are the black bloggers that are writing about the things that most of the bloggers on the NxE list write about? Do they exist in large numbers? As a tech enthusiast, I read and have linked to a lot of the blogs on the NxE list, but I would gladly give some link love to any black bloggers out there doing the same.
Oh, and I was going to mention Pam Spaulding too, but I see you two have been in touch. Glad to see it. She's good stuff.
And thanks for the honorable mention nod. Much appreciated. I'm shocked to have made it into the top twenty five, especially since I just lost a good three years of blogging due to a faulty database migration.
Village,
Great list... my favorite is Field Negro. I wish I could do just ONE BLOG ENTRY of the quality that he puts out every week!
I did not know about half of the Top Ten, so thanks for posting your list because now I have some new sites to check out for the rest of the week.
This is great! Be on the lookout for an article in one of the nations largest newspapers highlighting Black Bloggers and "The Movement" as I like to call it.
Keep up the Excellent work my brother. God Bless!
Thin Black Duke - With the new additions to the list Slant Truth is now #17 on the overall list.
Thank you for the referral to Blackhacker.net as they were not on the list prior to your mention.
I don't know about the technology- based Black blogs. I'll be on the look-out for them.
peace, Villager
plez - plezWorld is currently #46 on the list...which puts you at the 46 percentile of the world's known Black bloggers. We currently have 100 blogs on the list.
I agree with you about field! That brother has game!
peace, Villager
Shawn - Asante sana!
How about The Bilerico Project. We're a group blog with several black bloggers:
H. Alexander Robinson (Ex Dir of National Black Justice Coalition)
Terrance Heath (from Republic of T)
Pam Spaulding (from Pam's House Blend)
Herndon Davis
Nadine Smith
Rev Irene Monroe
Michael Crawford (from Bloggernista)
Yasmin Nair
Bill - First and foremost, thank you for taking time to visit us here on the Electronic Village. This is our first time trying to pull together a ranking of the Top Black Blogs. We only have one criteria at this point ... the blog needs to be owned by a person(s) of African descent. Although The Bilerico Project is outstanding in the diversity of its contributors ... it is apparent that the two owners of the blog are you and Jerame Davis. As such, your blog isn't eligible for the list ... although it is apparent that you have a very influential blog that villagers are encouraged to check out!
peace, Villager
Actually, Oliver Willis probably pulls the most traffic, BUT...
Back when I started we had this major cross-blog discussion around the topic, "what does it mean to be a Black blogger?" We kind of settled on a division between "Black bloggers" and "Black people who blog." You're collecting the former, Oliver is the latter.
P6 - Thanks for the referral of Oliver Willis. I had not seen his blog before tonight. He does jump directly into the #2 slot on the list of Top Black Bloggers. The new list is scheduled to be published in October 2007.
peace, Villager
That pushes me out of the top ten, I'm sure but that's fine. Get them all.
I may have to get your list...I've got another site in the works and one thing that's already working is a custom Google search engine. Folks can register their site themselves...I'm not up for drafting people really, but I AM up for sending invites out to all of them.
plezWorld is at Number 46?!? i wouldn't think that i'd even be on the LIST! *smile* thanks for the info...
WOW! raise the roof! raise the roof!
P6 - This has been an interesting couple of days with the TOP BLACK BLOGS idea. We're up to 135 Black Blogs on the list. You are currently #15. For now, you can invite the Black bloggers you know to visit here and let me know of their interest in participating. OK?
plez - Asante sana for the kind words. The list has almost doubled in just two days. Tell any Black Bloggers that you know to let me know if they have interest in participating.
peace, Villager
great list! field negro is my role model too!
Natural Muze - We have She's So Flyy listed at #89 right now. I just made you one of my faves so that I can keep up with your vibe.
peace, Villager
I think the “The Best Black Blogs You Never Heard Of" is a great idea.
I definitely want to have an environment where more of us express ourselves online. I know in one of my latest posts someone had the nerve to tell me I was playing the "race card". If he'd bothered read other posts on my blog he'd realize he was really coming out of left field with that one. Since I don't hold back, I told him where to stuff it.
It goes to having wave after wave of blacks from all over the disaspora speaking up not only about race, but about the other things that interest and impact them.
Here are three other black bloggers here in Korea:
1) The Metropolitician
He and I did a podcast called "Being Black in Korea" and we recently did another on Academic Fakery and the New Jack Hustle
here.
2) miss koco does korea
3) The Supa Dupa Fly Seoul Sista
So that's a start... ;-)
Oh isht, I forgot about these two. They're both in China:
1) Thee Black Guy in China
2) Caged Lion
I've got others linked in my sidebar, so come on over and click over to some other black bloggers.
Expat Jane - Thanx very much for the links to the international Black bloggers. I have added the ones that are still blogging to the list of Top Black Bloggers. There are 219 bloggers on the list now...
Where the Hell Am I? is at #14 on the list.
peace, Villager
Hey, thanks for the Top 10 shout out about my blog (Booker Rising)!!!
Shay - It is good to recognize talented Black bloggers. It is much more uplifting than to simply complain because we had no Black bloggers on the list of the most influential 50 bloggers. Anyhow, I published the Sept 2007 list with only 73 blogs in the total list. In less than a week the number has come up significantly. We now have 226 Black blogs under consideration.
peace, Villager
Posthumously: Steve Gilliard's News Blog.
We still miss you Steve.
On the question of whether to rank bloggerss or blogs, I would say the
latter. Do not most folk search for the blog, by title, rather than the blogger by name? I think, too, from a marketing standpoint, more publicity is generated by the title of the bnlog than the name of the blogger.
clink clink My 2 cents.
Iya - Thanx for weighing in on the blogger vs blog question. Over the subsequent two months we came to the same conclusion. We track the Black blogs and note the blogger names for the Top 10 only. The new list (Dec 2007) should be coming out later this week.
Interesting post. I look forward to checking out some of the sites on the list that I'm unfamiliar with.
Great list, Found you from Dallassouthblog. I would love to be added http://www.parentingtoys.com
Hustleman - I hope you have had a chance to visit many of them by now!
Ed - Your blog has been added to the Black Blog Rankings. It is BBR #594...
Pardon me mam' but why do the majority of the top black blogs all have to do with race? Aren't there black bloggers who blog about other things?
Nice compilation though...Just wondering.
Ariel - You are looking at a list of 75 blogs from Sep 2007. We now have over 1,000 blogs on the Black Blog Rankings and they discuss a wide range of topics...
I just started blogging and have been looking for us ever since. Thanks for the list! Looks like I have much more reading to do.
GrimySwipe - Your three blogs have been added to the BBR. You are BBR #1408, 1409 and 1410 right now...
Wow thanks. I know this is VERY late (like over a year ago) but I just saw the message.
Leon - It is always nice to be appreciated. Thank you for doing so...
peace, Villager
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