Same old voices syndrome?

Robert Scoble has stated that he isn't going to BlogWorld Expo because he hangs out with those speakers all the time anyway. You guessed it, I have several responses to that.

It's ugly.
What about all the new people coming up in blogging and new media? Sure, blogs have been around since the 90's but blogging is still moving mainstream. Growth isn't stagnant yet so why are we treating it as if it has jumped the shark? New media, like it's name, is still pretty new. Perhaps the technologies or ideas aren't new but it is only recently getting mainstream recognition. Blogging and new media hasn't peaked yet, and there are many voices yet to be heard. The ones that have been at the forefront and the spotlight thus far should recognize that they are both role models and resources that others can learn from. I would think that the speakers could use the fact that they all know each other already as an opportunity to mingle with all the newcomers and up and coming. Just because we aren't well known, doesn't mean we aren't worth spending time with. Snub your fans, lose your audience.

It's proof that we need new voices and new content.
The most frustrating thing I found when choosing my BlogWorld sessions was that I thought it was all too primary. There is an advanced track, but it really isn't so advanced in my opinion. The theme of the sessions seems to be either 1)you are brand spanking new to blogging 2)all you care about is making fat sacks of cash from a blog site and/or 3)you can't wait to be graced by the presence of the "a-list", no matter what they talk about. (I will add the disclaimer that I am making these judgments on session titles alone. I have not seen any session descriptions.)

Where is the content, the ethics, the community? I do see a few sessions that look like they might almost discuss one or two of these topics but overall all these topics that have been "in your face" as a blogger this year are mysteriously absent. So many blogs have the potential to be really great blogs if only the owner knew more about comments, dealing with trolls, design, and how to format a post. Blogging is about the content. Blogs brought the technology to those who had something to say and gave them a voice. Blogging is about the content + the mechanics + the technology. We need to address these most important things before we start dreaming about sleeping on a bed of money. Without content, an eye pleasing design, and engaging our audience there won't be any money to be had.

We need fresh content. Maybe it isn't the speakers or a-list bloggers that are stuck on repeat (or just regurgitating each other's main points), maybe it is the planners that are pushing the topics. Let's get some sysadmins, web developers, web designers, authors, professors and so on in there to talk about the full cycle of blogging. No matter whose fault it is the blogging community needs to step up, stop being awe inspired and nicey-nicey to the a-listers and give some feedback. Let's get back on track.