The Daily Cal, for obvious reasons, is no stranger to the hard knocks afflicting the newspaper industry right now.  If you thought you were sick of hearing about how journalism is supposedly inching closer to the grave with every tweet of some amateur blogger’s Twitter,  just imagine how we feel.  Seriously, “constant bombardment with prophecies of impending doom” doesn’t even begin to cover it.

That being said, though, all the change and innovation in media is kind of exciting.  Newspapers are no longer limited to the information they can fit onto a few slices of mashed tree pulp every day, and with online commenting, dialogue with readers is actually viable. Sure, having unlimited space for information can be intimidating, but it’s still pretty cool.

The tricky part is figuring out the ways to make the most of these opportunities using (for lack of a less obnoxious term) “new media.” The Daily Cal certainly doesn’t have all the answers, but you can be sure we’re doing our darndest to figure them out–even if that means we have to experiment … a lot.

For example, do we honestly think Twitter is a god-sent solution to all of journalism’s problems? No, probably not.  Can we understand why it’s popular? Yes.  Can we see why it’s useful? Totally. The point is, the Daily Cal is giving it (and anything else that may come along) a try, so let us know what you think.

Which brings me to my next point: the return of the Editors’ Blog, and welcome to it!  The editors will be here, generally discussing why we do what we do.  So if you have a question about an editorial decision, ask us. If you’ve got something to say, say it.  We’ll definitely be listening …

Our dear Clog is going through a lot of growing pains this semester. Not only did we start the year off with a new editor, but we’ve also had to work with a tiny staff while adjusting to a whole new blog design.

If you take a glimpse at the Daily Clog right now, you’ll see a clean, attractive interface–the kind you’d want to show to your mom. Beautiful, yes, but the transition did come with various technical difficulties. Since the semester began in mid-January, the Clog and its resident tech have been working hard to fix a wide spectrum of flaws in the new design, whether they be lost comments or broken links. We still have a lot of work to do, so bear with us.

Speaking of lost comments: Where have all the commenters gone? The last time we checked, blogging was supposed to be a highly interactive medium.

Don’t get us wrong. We do get comments, and we very much appreciate them. The occasional gripe about our writing abilities is nice, but we love what you think about the actual post topic even more. According to Lifehacker’s guide to weblog comments,

“Leaving a comment on someone’s weblog is like walking into their living room and joining in on a conversation … (g)ood blog commenters add to the discussion and are known as knowledgeable, informative, friendly and engaged.”

Why not jump into the Clog’s lively conversations?

Geek to Live: Lifehacker’s Guide to Weblog Comments [Lifehacker]