Comments on: More Than Worth a Click

By: bella

bella — Thu, 03 May 2007 12:18:58 +0000

Jamena, sorry you were disappointed in my response. I’m still not worried. Maybe it’s because I’m new to the game myself — Afrobella hasn’t even been around a year yet and also, I see my site as a personal expression, not a competing black entertainment/gossip site. I’ve been reading Jossip and Queerty and occasionally Fleshbot for a while now, so I’m familiar with their style and approach. As a conglomerate, I expected that at some point they’d realize there was an untapped market. They’ll probably have a Latin site before long. But I see it in the same way that Mollygood (also a Jossip site), Perez Hilton, DListed, and The Bosh and all of the other white gossip sites coexist. They all do something different, but I feel personally invested in the sites that I’ve seen grow. Like DListed, which will always be my favorite of the white gossip sites specifically because of Michael K. So while I might read and enjoy Stereohyped, Fresh will always be my go-to site for humor, and The Loop for everything else, and I’d like to think that advertisers realize how important and how invested black readers are in those sites. I’d be very interested in hearing what Concrete Loop and C&D think about this. Thanks for sharing your perspective. Do you have a blog as well?

By: Jamena

Jamena — Thu, 03 May 2007 06:05:46 +0000

I’ll be honest, I really did expect a better come back than that from you. It sound like a million other replies I have read from Blacks as they back White-owned businesses and so forth that eventually lead to the downfall of Black businesses.

Jossip went White first because naturally that is all they cared about. They are only in our back yards now because they see Black celebrity blogs making money and creating our their place on the net and now they want in on it.

This isn’t about competition, fear or any of the other silly implications you threw out. This is about Black bloggers being smart. Geez, haven’t we seen this enough times by now to know what will eventually happen?

Eventually when you think of Black entertainemnt blogs, or celebrity Black gossip, it will be White owned sites like Stereohyped that will come to mind and be sought out by the press to give their point of view on our issues.

As it stands now YBF, Bossip and Concrete Loop are all Black owned and the leaders in this market. They are who GIANT magazine featured. How long will this last? How long before one corporate hand washes the other and the press starts giving preference to the White owned so called Black blogs? How long before advertisers seek them out rather than the above sisters who run YBF, Bossip and CL? I am well aware what the sisters who run these sites are probably making in revenue and can’t you see in the long run, maybe 5, 10 even 20 years from now these opportunities will be gone for our people as there will be no place for the average Black blogger.

Does anyone remember all those Black sites that first dominated the net when it started? Where are they now? What is left is Asian owned Black Planet and White owned Black Voices.

Watch as Stereohyped and others soon to pop have the Black gossip market on lock. And when you look for anything Black celebrity related in a search it will lead to their sites as they again have the money and backing to buy up keywords and flood the search engines with their sites.

I could go on and on but it would be no use. The average Black gossip site today won’t stand a chance against the corporate giants. Your readership and most definitely your search engine traffic can be taken away like that sister, please don’t be fooled. This is a game of numbers and whereas it would take the average up and coming site months, even years to break into the game, Stereohyped already has a Google page rank of 5. That ties you sista and tops several other Black blogs that started last year.

Jossip bought their page rank and will soon buy up Black celebrity gossip all together.

By: bella

bella — Thu, 03 May 2007 03:22:58 +0000

Jamena, I’m a smart black blogger, and I’m not even worried about Stereohyped. Here’s why: Nobody can steal my readership from me, and more competition just means that I have to step my game up and have the best site I can possibly have. There’s enough room on the internet for all kinds of sites. Stereohyped is clever, it combines smart gossip, politics, and I even saw a little beauty and fashion creeping in there. The fact that a corporate site like that exists means that black bloggers need to step up and deliver a smarter, better product. We already have the readership, and the authenticity. I don’t think there’s much to be afraid of.

By: Jamena

Jamena — Thu, 03 May 2007 01:06:57 +0000

If Black bloggers are smart they will not support Stereohyped. As Black entertainment blogs have taken off and now rival their White counterparts, Whites now see that it is time for them to MUSCLE in on this business. And being a corporation rather than just than just regular folk , they have the money and power to easily take over this genre. Do you really think Stereohyped was created to serve us? No. This is a business move. Mark my words, more and more of these corporate backed sites will be popping up until they have eventually taken over. But we are quick to not to see the train coming until it has ran over us. But I guess in 5 years someone will write an article called “Taking Back The Black Blog Business”, but by then it will be too late. Wake up ppl.

By: Andrea

Andrea — Wed, 02 May 2007 14:52:34 +0000

Wouldn’t embracing the word “nappy” be the same as embracing the word “nigger?”

By: Anne

Anne — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 16:43:27 +0000

“if Iâ€™m shelling out four bucks for some shiny paper, I want to feel educated, enlightened, and definitely amused by what Iâ€™ve read. And more and more these days, Iâ€™m finding that stimulation online.”

– I hear ya.
And thanks for those recommendations. They are awesome!

By: Eska Vaughn

Eska Vaughn — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 04:48:31 +0000

I just posted about your induction into the IBB Hall of Fame. Er, or something like that. I luvs your blog: it is fantastic! And funny! And most important – smart! Keep it up – you’re an inspiration…å®‰

By: Neneh

Neneh — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 22:09:11 +0000

Thanks for the procrastination material!

By: Niki

Niki — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 13:58:51 +0000

The only magazine I actually purchase is In Style. Otherwise, I read them in the check out line or flip through them when I go to the library, and then it’s only People or Marie Claire. My favorite site (other than this one, of course) is Crunk & Disorderly. I am weaning myself away from Perez Hilton(who is trying to be a celebrity and his little drawings on pictures and silly catchphrases are getting old) and Mollygood (it’s still kind of cool when Cord isn’t grandstanding) and C & D is just plain old funny, irreverent, and crazy. I have to check myself at work when I’m looking at that site because Fresh inevitably will write something that makes me laugh out loud. Totally off topic, but I saw that Carol’s Daughter has new lip glosses called “Candy Paint” and they look very interesting!

By: ErinLori

ErinLori — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 05:51:54 +0000

I am a sista with a relaxer and I don’t laugh at other sista who keep their hair natural. I am planning on getting dread locks one day. I think that its awesome to see a sista with a fro and dreads or braids. I commend you all. I consider myself an afrobella as well.