Legal Research

"A Noteworthy Blog from an Unlikely Lawyer"

Posted by Robert J. Ambrogi: "We here at Legal Blog Watch are always on the lookout for new blogs from high-profile lawyers and law firms. But one recently launched blog written by a long-time lawyer strikes us as particularly noteworthy, if for no other reason than the unlikeliness that it would ever exist.

The blogger in question is Dmitry Medvedev, who besides being a lawyer just happens to be president of the Russian Federation. As the leader of a country not historically known for its embrace of transparency, Medvedev might seem an unlikely blogger. But in both a Live Journal blog, Dmitry Medvedev's Blog, and in a video blog, Dmitry Medvedev's Videoblog, the Russian president is joining the world of social media.

Medvedev established the blog, reports Posted by Robert J. Ambrogi, to bypass bureaucratic barriers and engage Russian citizens in direct and uncensored conversation. Whether there is a conversation taking place remains to be seen, but the blog has attracted thousands of comments from anonymous Russian readers. Even some old-line Kremlin observers are praising Medvedev for the blog, the Monitor says, while others say it is nothing more than a PR stunt.

For those of you who, like me, do not read Russian, you can follow Medvedev's blog through Google Reader. Simply subscribe to its feed and then click on the button in Google Reader labeled "Feed settings." There you'll find an option to "translate into my language." Yes, the translations are a bit rough, but you'll get the sense of Medvedev's posts. Perhaps you'll even want to comment on one yourself."

The active links are available at the source site listed below.

Source: Legal Blog Watch, 30 April 2009

Full post as published by Stark County Law Library Blawg on May 01, 2009 (boomark / email).