Thanks for mentioning FWJ – and although I know you don’t agree with the PR thing, i would like to add that I know of several PR agencies that are now employing blogging or social media expert so they can help businesses with their online presence. That’s not to say one can hop from their Blogspot blog to a top PR firm, but yes, PR firms are now reaching into the blogosphere. (I know because two already contacted me to consult.)

And I have absolutely no doubt some are. Most I’ve seen do it though have also made fools of themselves and been called out on it throughout the industry for everything from fake blogs and fake blog comments to absolutely miserable “blogger outreach” programs that demonstrated little more than far too many bloggers are still willing to be “bought” (and I’m talking big firms and major corp. insiders on a lot of these gaffs). The self-proclaimed social media experts that they’re bringing (in blogging and other areas) are becoming the butt of a lot of jokes to say the least (especially in the last couple of weeks), and while the medium is certainly far from dying, they’re starting to get smarter about implementing basic PR good practices in their blogger relations efforts (working with people who can do both).

So while I have no doubt some firms are still behind on that, and that some bloggers will still be able to make the leap, I don’t see it becoming anything close to common. In fact, much of the PR world does consider blogging to be dying (I’m not of that mindframe), with top educators and practitioners moving away from the medium in favor of other social media projects (and taking their clients with them). I think they’re idiots for doing that, but hey… only so much we can do. I’d rather have folks like that out of blogging anyway. ;)