Are Modern Bloggers Following in the Footsteps of Publius? (And Other Musings on Blogging by Legal Scholars . . .)
Publication Title
Washington University Law Review
Abstract
Is legal blogging an antidote to the hyper-scholasticism that sometimes characterizes the legal academy today? Or is it a self-indulgence for legal scholars? It's hard to know. On the one hand, there is a proud American tradition behind the publication of concise but erudite essays aimed at a broad audience concerning the important legal issues of the day, starting with the Federalist Papers. It's hard to believe that neglecting that tradition in favor of a cloistered academic existence in which legal scholars write only for each other could be a good thing. On the other hand, even the best legal blogs contain more chaff than wheat. And legal bloggers who offer mostly ill-considered opinions on every topic imaginable may bring disrepute to the legal academy. On the whole, I am inclined to be cautiously optimistic about the potential value of legal blogging. But then I enjoy blogging, so perhaps my judgment on these matters ought not be deferred to too readily.
Recommended Citation
Gail Heriot,
Are Modern Bloggers Following in the Footsteps of Publius? (And Other Musings on Blogging by Legal Scholars . . .),
84 Wash. U. L. Rev. 1113
(2006).
Available at: https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/law_lawreview/vol84/iss5/9