Blog Journalism As an Online Public Sphere: a Case Study of Weblogging from the 2008 Terrorist Attacks in Mumbai and Its Rational, Deliberative and Inclusive Potential

The public sphere is one of the most enduring sociological concepts and recently there has been interest in the potential of blog journalism to serve as an online public sphere. This thematic and discourse analysis focuses on 15 blog posts from the Indian blogosphere around the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. The posts were critically analysed along three characteristics considered crucial for a public sphere to exist: rational-critical, deliberative and inclusive. The conclusion this study established was, that despite shortcomings, blogging around the Mumbai terrorist attacks could be placed within the scope of the public sphere and this holds great potential for virtual discourse in a socially stratified country.