Fact is some folks just cannot use their real names. I could never say what I believe if I used my real name. I am not opposed to anonymity or pseudo-anonymity, I am opposed to folks picking an identity for the occasion. You know, the fellow that leaves a nasty comment without an address of their blog or an email address. I call them drive-by-trolls. I can deal with trolls if they really want to debate their ideas and leave a means to get in touch.

Any use of anonymity to be fundamentally deceptive or dishonest is anathema. Use of anonymity to engage in personal attacks, threats or harassment is vile… and dangerous. To the attacker. *heh*

I blog quasi-anonymously, simply because of my wife’s work (yeh, supervisors who take an unhealthy interest in the lives of workers’ family members–and “quasi-anonymously” because I seriously doubt anyone associated with her work is capable of discovering me through the BROAD hints I leave). “Caesar’s wife” and all that. But anyone who emails me knows my name, because I do reply to non-SPAM email. And anyone who wants to can winkle my name out on the web with ease via just a few simple searches.

But comment with genuine anonymity on someone else’s blog? Nah. I may sorta-anonymously comment from time to time when the choice is between taking the time to register (check email for login, login, THEN comment–*yawn*) or simply dropping an “anonymous” note (with my IP still fully in the open). But in cases like that, I’m likely to just pass on taking the trouble to comment at all (or if it’s a VERY good blog, subscribe to the RSS feed and reply to posts via email–more common and even less “quasi-anonymous”).

I’ve had sock puppet trolls, including one who easily uncovered my name and promised to drop by and get physical, @twc. Boring. *yawn* Banned. Life’s too short to deal with idiots unnecessarily.

LaShawn continues to dole out advice on blogging ethics. It’s advice I wish people didn’t need. One would think, “Don’t pretend to be someone else defending yourself on blogs.” I don’t think most of the sock puppeteers did so out of an unawarenes…

What she said runs more along the lines of #7 UNK’s comment where a person pretends to be someone they’re not. That’s taking the concept of being your own best friend too far!

That, and being in the military. I don’t want anyone to think that my opinion is the Army’s opinion.

There is another dimension to using your name.

This other dimension is “what is the source” when you opine.

The classic offender of this dimension is “journalist” Seymour Hersh. He almost always “can’t tell you” his “sources”. He often makes wild accusations (mostly of Republicans) without naming how he got his “information”.

Bob Woodward is a Hersh Wannabe – his “deep throat” was revealed only after the “source” was too far gone to recall if he really was the source.

http://www.boston.com/business/globe/articles/2006/03/30/job_applicants_online_musings_get_hard_look/

My take is that sincerity and honesty are what matter, far more than the use of a silly posting name like RedBeard.

One blogger I know uses an alias because he is a prosecuting attorney. His personal views, posted on line under his real name, might adversely affect his courtroom work and could possibly put him at risk personally. The same goes for a friend of mine who is a bank officer charged with collecting bad corporate debt, a somewhat dangerous job (his life has been threatened several times) which causes him to have an unlisted phone number and an anonymous home address, for reasons of personal safety. He wouldn’t likely post using his real name.

But some commenters use multiple aliases to aid fighting on discussion boards, a tactic I find childish in the extreme. I run a small hobby board myself, and even there, with totally non-controversial subject matter, I have to deal with childish ne’er-do-wells who insist upon that sort of behavior. I’ve never understood any of that.

Anyhow, in the interest of moving slightly in the direction of disclosure, my middle name is Lee. Oooooo, now I feel naked.

It’s much different for someone who blogs/writes as their full time job. That situation creates the opposite condition, because you want to use your real name in that case…. you are marketing your name and writing articles in newspapers/magazines, and appearing all over the net and on television, authoring books, writing forwards, etc etc…. And perhaps even teaching, or the person may be a marketing/writing consultant, etc…. Your name becomes a serious part of the business.

Another reason why people use their real names is because they may already be a well known person, such as a journalist, even before they begin blogging… and their names become part of the marketing to get readers to visit their sites. Again, in this case, you want your name out there….since as a journalist, you are already known.

But for those of us who get up and go to traditional jobs, this is not really the best option. And as someone who understands security, I would say that such advise is pretty bad from a security standpoint.

I will just add that blogging anonymously (or with a pseudonym) does not mean that someones blog is of lesser quality… or that someone is lying about something. That’s not the case with me.

And someone mentioned someone losing their job over blogging…. THERE HAVE BEEN TONS OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE LOST THEIR JOBS OVER BLOGGING. This is one of the main reasons why people don’t use their real info.

People often run into problems simply for having a different political view than their bosses. And the other reason has to do with issues specific to the jobs (my boss sucks, my company sucks, or bad day at work rants).

The U.S. has turned into a Nazi State when it comes to blogging/free speech/free expression/political views, etc.

You would be a fool not to protect yourself in this kind of social/political climate.

Anonymity is a positive thing…. it gives people more freedom to say what is on their minds. That’s what makes blogging so great. I think this kind of freedom makes blogging more genuine, not less genuine…. because you know (in many cases) you are getting the real thing in terms of what the blogger is thinking or what they have to say.
People tend to hold back or put up a front if they use their real ID’s and are exposed to retribution because of their views. That kills the whole spirit that blogging is built on.

I am not a blogger but I do have a penchant for commenting (Google 1,190 entries). It never entered my mind to post MY thoughts without signing them with my own name. Would you make anonymous phone calls?

Danger? Journalists have been posting for centuries under their own names. A few, very few, have come a cropper for their work. Driving to the corner store is far more dangerous.

Regards,
Roy

I have a similar viewpoint about people, politics, etc., that I describe as, “Think Stereotypically, Act Individually” (see more here – http://sokol-blog.com/?page_id=3 ).