Say Anything (blog)

Infobox weblog
name=Say Anything


caption=
political_affiliation=Conservative
website=http://sayanythingblog.com

Say Anything is a popular political and current events blog created and run by Rob Port of Minot, ND who has proclaimed the website to be "North Dakota's most popular political blog." It consists of a "main page" section with multiple contributors and a "reader blogs" section that is open for public posting [cite web|url=http://sayanythingblog.com/static/get_a_reader_blog|title=Say Anything reader blogs|accessdate=2008-07-13] . The blog was started on September 10th, 2003 and has since become the most widely read political blog in North Dakota, and one of the most widely read in the nation as well. Currently Say Anything is listed at #57 on Wikio's list of the internet's most influential political blogs [citeweb|url=http://www.wikio.com/blogs/top/politics|title=Wikio's list of political blogs|accessdate=2008-07-13] and has been nominated twice for the Weblog Awards' "Best Conservative Blog" category (2005 [cite web|url=http://weblogawards.org/2005/12/best_conservative_blog.php|title=Weblog Award nomination, 2005|accessdate=2008-07-13] and 2007 [cite web|url=http://2007.weblogawards.org/polls/best-conservative-blog-1.php|title=Weblog Award nomination, 2007|accessdate=2008-07-13] ).

The blog

Say Anything, in keeping with its title, is unique among high-traffic blogs in that it does not require commenters to register and does not ban commenters on a regular basis. This creates a free-wheeling comments section which is often filled with personal insults and vulgar language, but also with diversity of thought and ideology. This same mindset is also applied to the posts in the reader blogs section which frequently feature writings by authors from all parts of the political spectrum.

yndication

Unlike a lot of blogs, Say Anything's reach extends beyond its domain through a number of different syndication arrangements. Front page posts are syndicated on Reiten Broadcasting's CBS affiliate websites in western North Dakota [citeweb|url=http://www.kxnet.com/Voices/Blogs/SayAnything|title=Syndication on KXNET|accessdate=2008-07-13] . Front page posts are also featured in a number of mainstream media outlets such as Reuters, "USA Today", "The Houston Chronicle" and the "Chicago Sun-Times" through the Newstex content syndication service [citeweb|url=http://www.newstex.com/products/story_blog.php?blog_id=691|title=Newstext syndication|accessdate=2008-07-13] .

Indian reservation banishment

In 2007, after writing an op/ed for "The Dakota Beacon" entitled "The Appalling State Of Our Indian Reservations" [citeweb|url=http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/the_appalling_state_of_our_indian_reservations/|title="The Appalling State Of Our Indian Reservations", "Say Anything" op-ed|accessdate=2008-07-13] , Say Anything's owner and chief contributor Rob Port made national headlines when he was banished from the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation by the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa [citeweb|url=http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2007May17/0,4670,BloggerBanished,00.html|title="Blogger Banished"|accessdate=2008-07-13] . According to an Associated Press accounting of the event:

The resolution by the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa says Rob Port's column was "injurious to the peace and seriously threatens the general welfare, health, safety, political security and prosperity" of the tribe and others in North Dakota.

The resolution banning Port was passed using the Turtle Mountain Chippewa's "exclusion code" which was instituted to allow the tribe to keep undesirables such as drug dealers and sex criminals off of the reservation. In a posting on Say Anything Port said that his banishment was politically motivated and not in keeping with the original intent of the exclusion code. He also wrote that he was not provided due process prior to his banishment in accordance with the tribe's own code which required notification of the person to be banished and an opportunity to appear before the tribal council. Port claims that he received neither a notification of the banishment nor an opportunity to appear before the council.

External links

* [http://sayanythingblog.com Say Anything website]

Refereneces