Blogging is...

#1 A form of unedited, authentic self-expression

#2 An instant publishing tool

#3 An online journal with freshly updated content

#4 Amateur journalism

#5 Something that will revolutionize the Web (think RSS feeds)

#6 A way to create community with your voters, er... readers (think 2,200 comments posted to the Dean for America blog in one day)

#7 An alternative to mainstream media (think InstaPundit by Glenn Reynolds and TalkingPointsMemo by Joshua Micah Marshall)

#8 A tool to teach students how to write (think Kaye Trammel at the University of Florida)

#9 A new way to communicate with customers (think Ray Ozzie, CEO of Groove Networks)

#10 A new form of knowledge management inside big companies

#11 A way for a bunch of navel-gazers to communicate with one another

#12 Something to keep you occupied when you're unemployed (more people than care to admit fit into this category; have you noticed?)

#13 A way to think and write in short paragraphs instead of a long essay (which no one has time to read anyway)

#14 Your email to everyone, as A-list blogger Doc Searls puts it (i.e. a way to stay in touch with family and friends)

#15 A silly word that's fun to say ("Gotta go blog now... ")

#16 A way of writing with a distinct voice and personality (think Halley Suitt)

#17 Something to talk about at cocktail parties ("I blogged Seth Godin and he blogged me back...")

#18 A URL to add to your resume

#19 Something else to do with your mobile phone...think audio blogging and moblogging

#20 Something you don't want your mother to read (what my mother says about blogging)