At BlogPhiladelphia, Emily King, editor on the Intelligent Travel blog for National Geographic Traveler Magazine said that each post on that blog is looked at by at least two researchers and a copy editor before it goes live.
Not really an 'immediate' publishing tool. I wonder how they deal with comments?
As a contrast, I'm sitting next to Benet Wilson who blogs for Aviation Week at Towers and Tarmacs. She says that no editor reviews her posts before they go online.
Update: During the Q&A, Emily said that the posting process normally takes a week.
Visitor Comments
Hi josh, looks like you're having fun in Philly. Order a cheesesteak for me!
As for the mediation required by National Geo, I can relate (to both sides of this). They want to protect their brand. And in their case they have one worth protecting. I've faced similar issues with my work blog, http://blog.bfgcom.com I think the trick is finding people in the organization who don't need to be edited, and that's not always as simple as it sounds.
Posted by: David Burn | July 12, 2007 11:03 AM
Newspapers have faster turn arounds!
Posted by: Alex Rudloff | July 12, 2007 11:58 AM
Wow! I can't imagine having to wait so long to post my content. My feeling about my blog is twofold: one, it allows me to get information out on an immediate basis; and two, I can write about things that may not fit into my publications but may still be of interest to my community.
Posted by: Benet Wilson | July 12, 2007 1:24 PM
Yup, it slows things down, but we want to be as accurate online as we are in print. Thanks for highlighting Intelligent Travel!
National Geographic Traveler fact-checker
Posted by: Marilyn Terrell | July 13, 2007 1:53 PM
Personally, I have zero problem with NG having that kind of publishing process. In fact, I'd worry if they didn't.
NG as a magazine has a tone of well/fully researched, long lead times, but in-depth content. A "good" blog for them is one that conveys that same voice and attitude.
By contrast, I worked on a blog for a local Dallas whose magazine was more frequent and more snarky. A fast post, quick jot voice and style absolutely fit with their magazine.
Now, comments are another thing entirely. Research the hell out of your entries, fine. But let the comments go up unaltered and fast.
Posted by: Jake McKee | July 18, 2007 2:48 PM