Bloggers are for real

ABC's Blotter blog observes that at least in the realm of US intelligence gathering, the "are bloggers real journalists" question is already decided. Despite the rap that bloggers simply bloviate and don't try to find things out, a conservative newspaper columnist Robert Novak once sniffed, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the National Security Agency (NSA) have altered policies to indicate they're taking blogs seriously, and a growing number of public offices are actively reaching out to the blogosphere. The CIA recently updated its policies on Freedom of Information Act requests to allow bloggers to qualify for special treatment once reserved for old-school reporters. And last August, the NSA issued a directive to its employees to report leaks of classified information to the media — "including blogs," the order said."