It's time somebody cracks down on bloggers, CNN anchors believe.

This is funny because while they say there should be a crackdown on anonymous bloggers who disparage others on the internet, they also say bloggers are cowardly people seeking attention. There certainly are people who seek to stir up a stink from the shelter of anonymity, but if someone really wants attention, anonymous will not fit the bill. It is far more likely that overly primped and preened anchors are jealous that they are not as unchallenged in the role of shapers of media focus as they once were. Anonymous and attention-seeking seem like mutually exclusive terms, to me. They are whining because their flogging of talking-points has been derailed by stories people have demanded to hear more about. So what if the un-polished and un-brainwashed have opinions they want to put out there? Then again, a media who did double-time buttressing the specious stances of the likes of Michael Moore and Al Gore would be understandably running scared, as they know too well the power of the oft-repeated lie. Pot: meet kettle, bitches.

Mention is also made of a book entitled "The Cult of the Amateur: How Today's Internet is Killing Our Culture," its author being asked what's to be done about all these uncredentialed folk run amok and setting afoot fantastical stories news anchors find upsetting[sharing information not formally sanctioned by the Press Secretary]. For good or bad, the internet is the most efficient social lubricant since the distillation process was perfected. The marketplace will out and the mainstream media are running scared because they are no longer the sole umbilical by which the public gets news-related information. No doubt laws and sanctions will be passed to declare this medium not subject to silly documents in our nation's founding which guaranteed we all get to say our peace. Until that time, let the chips fall where they may.

In olden times, towns sprang up around wells, and folks would exchange news and gossip around the town well. Many years have passed, but I think we cleave to sources we consider reliable and relatable and in that way the ability to share information via the internet has served the purpose of town well. With their falling numbers, television and print media whining about bloggers is like the Prom Queen grousing because someone asked the wallflower to dance. In a free marketplace celebratory of freedom of speech and freedom of the press, there should be room for everyone at the table (except for the ones I find icky). I suppose the question becomes is this a free marketplace with freedom of the press and freedom of speech?