Wardman Wire Magazine

Following on from my earlier article about UK Political Blogs, this is the Top 10 List for all UK Blogs. I’ll keep his short.

The key points:

Massive jumps into the Top 10 for:

• Blah Blah Technology.
• Imran Ali’s Blog.
• xLab.
• Plugged Out

80% of the blogs (16 from 20) are about either Politics or Technology.

Here is the full list:

1	Blah! Blah! Technology		+115
2	Iain Dale’s Diary		=
3	xlab		+18
4	Coolest Gadgets		+3
5	Crooked Timber		-4
6	The Guardian - The blog - Books		-1
7	Guy Fawkes’ blog		+6
8	imran.ali		+374
9	The Red Ferret Journal		+1
10	TechDigest		-6
11	Liberal Conspiracy		+9
12	normblog		-1
13	The Devil’s Kitchen		+3
14	TechCrunch UK		-6
15	ConservativeHome’s ToryDiary		-1
16	The Guardian Technology blog		-7
17	jkkmobile		+9
18	Pluggedout		+94
19	politicalbetting.com		=
20	Mind Hacks		-8

Wrapping Up

You can read my comments on the changes in the algorithm in my previous post.

I have had an exclusive look at the new rankings for political blogs by Wikio which are coming out tomorrow, and there are some major changes.

These rankings are based on links from blog articles on monitored blogs, and that blogroll links are ignored.

There have been some changes to the algorithm to take links from blogs over the previous 9 months into account (rather than 4), and the value attached to a link gradually reduces (on a straight line basis) as it gets older. The changes this month are larger than are likely in the future.

I’m writing this offline (connection problems), so I can

These are the key changes in the UK Top Political Blog rankings (full list is below):

• Liberal Conspiracy is now number 3 (which puts it at no 11 in the rankings for “All Blogs”).
• LibDem Voice is now ahead of Labour Home.
• Nick Robinson’s BBC Politics Blog has dropped (just) out of the Top 20 behind some Independents.
• Dizzy Thinks is at number 18, having appeared from nowhere in the politics rankings last time.
• The Wardman Wire is now number 14 (18 under the previous system). Chicken Yoghurt has also advanced.
• If Normblog were in the “Politics” not the “Other” category it would be in the Top 5 in this list.

By my reckoning almost half of these top 20 are group blogs or blogs with multiple regular contributors (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15 in the list below).

With Wikio the real benefit is to be in the Top 10, then a link is displayed in the sidebar of some pages on the Wikio site, which helps visibility and traffic.

First things first.

There are “lack of internet” problems at Wardman Towers.

That necessitates a trip to the local “pub with Wireless Net Access” for a late afternoon nurdle, but means that there have been no posts today.

My apologies.

It would happen on the day that I have a new story about the updated Wikio poltical blog rankings (*), and am doing the Britblog Roundup.

(*) Liberal Conspiracy is up to 3, Labour Home comprehensively overtaken by Lib Dem Voice, Nick Robinson drops out of top 20 (just), Wardman Wire up to 14.

Tags: liberal conspiracy, nick robinson

Recently I posted three articles from Dave Walker’s reporting of the SPCK Saga, with the comment that I did not find them in the least defamatory.

This afternoon I am posting a PDF document containing all 75 posts that Mark Brewer requested that Dave Walker remove from the Cartoon Church blog.

I said when I started reporting this affair that I thought Dave Walker’s posts were reasonable and careful reporting. Having edited the whole lot into a PDF file I even found this quote from October 21 2006:

The Orthodox take on SPCK

Orthodox charity St Stephen the Great Charitable Trust are to take over the SPCK bookshop chain, which you might remember from my campaign earlier in the year.

This is splendid news as it means the future of the shops has been safeguarded.

My opinion is that any claim that these posts are defamatory is - to borrow a good New York word - baloney.

Rather, the tale is one where Dave Walker started out reporting the management of the SPCK Bookshops by the Brewer’s using the vehicle of the Saint Stephen the Great Trust with optimism which was gradually turned into disillusion by the experience of events over the last 21 months.

However, I invite you to read the material (PDF, just under 2Mb), make your own decision, then post your own opinions in the appropriate places.

If this post if considered defamatory then I will consider removing it on receipt of a Mandatory Injunction from a British Court.

In the meantime, I will welcome any comment on the history documented by Dave Walker.

Tags: cartoonchurch, dave walker, j mark brewer, saint stephen the great, spck, ssg

The SNP has pulled off a sensational by-election victory.

Someone is going to be absolutely insufferable.

Oh ‘Eck.

I’m going to wrap my head in a wet towel as a preemptive defence against headache I’m going to get listening to the waves of smugness emanating from the Radio tomorrow morning.

David Davis - the Conservative Shadow Home Secretary - has triggered a byelection in his home constituency over the issue of 42 days detention without trial.