Objectivism Website Index – October 2010
The third installment of my index of Objectivist sites and those with sympathetic ideas is now available, with data from October 2010 from Compete.com. You can check out the August 2010 and September 2010 lists as well. I currently monitor traffic for 214 websites, and list everyone with 1000+ visitors here.
Now With Tracking for Hosted Blogs
For the first two lists, I was not able to provide traffic data for blogs that were hosted on WordPress, Blogspot, Livejournal or other subdomains. Now, I have a paid account with Compete.com which gives me access to that data. I’m excited to reveal several popular blogs that were previously excluded: Rule of Reason, EGO by Martin Lindeskog, and Bosch Fawstin.
New Additions to the List This Month
We have 10 new additions to the list this month: Objectivist Answers, John McCaskey, Bosch Fawstin, EGO by Martin Lindeskog, Principles of a Free Society, Objectivism 101, The Prodos Blog, Rule of Reason, A Daily Dose of Reason with Dr.Hurd, and Capitalism by George Reisman
Also, I’d like to note that Rational Mind has been removed from the list because although it an Objectivist site and receives a lot of traffic, it is due to an awesome programming blog hosted by the author at a subdomain, unrelated to Objectivism. Thank you to David for clearing this up.
October 2010 Index
Giving the List an Official Name
I’m not really satisfied with the “Objectivism Index” because it doesn’t really give it a name to match the purpose of the list. I’m not deeply concerned with whether or not the people on this list are Objectivists. Instead, I’m curious to see who is out there having an impact on cultural change in the direction we want to see. This means that people advocating for capitalism, individualism, and other values are interesting to me… even if they’re not Objectivists. I think a smaller list that focuses on the success of ARI affiliated sites and Objectivist intellectuals might also be an interesting project, but this is broader than that.
Criteria for Inclusion in the List
With Pamela rocketing to the #1 spot, I expect it will soon be necessary to have a conversation about how this list is put together and who makes the cut, since I’ve positioned it as being primarily about Objectivism and she is a Libertarian thought leader. I’m curious to hear your thoughts in the comments, and I will be writing a separate post soon to further this topic and share my thought process. Editor’s Note: I’ve removed Pamela’s blog from the list for now, since her connections to Objectivism are a lot less significant than I had originally thought.
Suggestions and Additions
I am still very actively looking for more sites to index and monitor. There are over 200 websites that I am currently watching that do NOT make the cut for the monthly index. If you would like to submit your site for inclusion next month, please feel free to leave a note in the comments or contact me using the info found on my contact page.
Objectivism Index – September 2010
In follow up to my original post Who’s Actually Getting Read in Objectivism (Online) I’ve created a new list based on the September 2010 Compete.com data about websites related to Objectivism. As I’ve mentioned before, there are several shortcomings to Compete.com data and I realize these numbers may not be representative of actually unique visitors. To learn about how they collect their data, I recommend reading the Compete.com Data Methodology. One major downside of Compete.com is that it only captures US based traffic.
To summarize, both local records from the website owner’s server and Google Analytics have upsides and downsides when it comes to tracking unique visitors. This image below from Compete.com summarizes to some extent. I realize this is not ideal, and while I welcome data reports from publishers/editors I will not be using these to change rankings, only to annotate the list (for now). It has been suggested that I should provide a snippet of Javascript which can be embedded into sites for those editors/publishers who wish to provide reliable data.
I present to you the list of individuals, organizations, blogs, and others who discuss, spread, and explore the ideas of Objectivism. Please understand that I am not concerned with whether or not the authors are considered Objectivists or in support of the Ayn Rand Institute. Instead, the focus here is on who is effective in making these ideas mainstream. For reference to previous rankings, please see the August 2010 list.
Objectivism Index – September 2010
Objectivism: activist cultural change Objectivism objectivist blogs Objectivists objectivsm online objetivist community
by Danielle Morrill
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Who’s Actually Getting Read in Objectivism (Online)
Editor’s Note: Thank you to those publications who’ve reached out with concerns about the accuracy of these numbers. The source for this data is compete.com which is free and public, and while I think this offers reasonable relative positioning (who is getting more traffic than others), it doesn’t provide great absolute numbers. I’m looking into better sources for a future list (Alexa, DoubleClick Ad Planner, Quantcast etc.).
If you would like to provide Google Analytics data on your unique traffic for August 2010, you can email morrilldanielle@gmail.com. I am adding changes as I get them.
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Today I’m taking a look at publications containing content about Objectivism, to see just how much they’re being read online. This idea of ranking websites by traffic comes from Marcelo Calbucci, the creator of Seattle 2.0 and the Seattle Startup Index, where I was Editor in Chief while in Seattle.
Some of these sites are about Objectivism with a capital “O”, endorsed and aligned with the Ayn Rand Institute, while others are not. What I’m interested in here is finding out who is most effectively reaching the Objectivist audience, whether aligned with ARI or not. Like them? Hate them? Take note, these are the facts — these are the people winning the hearts and minds of those who take interest in the philosophy of Ayn Rand and related ideas.
All stats below are provided by compete.com and are for the month of August 2010. I did not include any site with less than 1,000 monthly uniques and were not able to get stats for blogs hosted on wordpress, blogspot, etc.
Popular Objectivism Related Websites
- Ayn Rand Institute – 48,886 uniques (this is down 43% from a year ago)
- Capitalism Magazine – 21,807 uniques
- The Objective Standard – 19,076 uniques *provided by author
- Diana Hsieh – 15,272 uniques
- Sense of Life Objectivists – 13,097 uniques *provided by author
- NobleSoul.com – 11,983 uniques
- Ayn Rand Lexicon – 9,691 uniques
- The Atlas Society (The Objectivist Center) – 8,800 uniques
- RebirthofReason.com – 7,937 uniques
- Ayn Rand Bookstore – 6,846 uniques
- The Atlasphere (the dating site) – 6,684
- ObjectivismOnline – 6,647 uniques
- Forum 4AynRandFans.com (Betsey Speicher)- 6,110 uniques
- Leonard Peikoff – 6,002 uniques
- Paul Hsieh – 5,344 uniques
- Mudita Journal – 4,954 uniques
- ObjectivistLiving.com – 4,708 uniques
- The Undercurrent – 4,040 uniques
- The Ayn Rand Center – 3,721 uniques
- Ayn Rand Center TV – 2,679 uniques
- The New Clarion – 2,471 uniques *provided by author
- Nathaniel Branden – 2,430 uniques
- Trey Givens – 1,815 uniques *provided in comments
- Erosophia by Jason Stotts – 1,584 uniques *provided by author
- Randex.org – 1,512 uniques *provided by author
- Free Colorado by Ari Armstrong – 1,440 uniques
- The Intellectual Activist – 1,424 uniques
- Capitalism.net (George Reisman) – 1,191 uniques
- Danielle Morrill (this site) – 1,081 uniques *provided by author
Interesting People/Sites who don’t make the cut (but we hope you will next time): HBList.com, AndrewBerstein.net, Yaron Brook, The Center for the Advancement of Capitalism, Anthem Foundation, Amy Mossoff, John McCaskey, The Objectivist, ARI Watch, Ellen Kenner, Objectivist Answers
Some comparison sites (suggested by various people as having similar target audiences):
- Huffington Post – 13,631,093 uniques
- Daily KOS – 1,068,820 uniques
- Heritage Foundation – 523,361 uniques
- Michelle Malkin – 488,281
- Von Mises Institute – 337,278 uniques
- Cato Institute – 200,254 uniques
- Ann Coulter – 190,400 uniques
Efficient Distribution of Ideas
I’ve talked a lot privately about my frustration with Objectivism’s lack of penetration into the mainstream, especially online where the barrier to entry is a lot lower than in traditional mainstream media. My gut told me we could be doing more than a bunch of rarely updated blogs, websites that look like they were designed in the early 1990s, the press releases. Where’s the discussion, the punditry, the passion? I hadn’t actually looked at the numbers, but they bear out what I expected… the early adopters and core supporters of Objectivism are reading… but where is everyone else. Assuming there is a lot of crossover in the readership of the sites I listed above, the total audience is probably less than 100,000 uniques a month.
It’s not like we’re reaching new heights either. The Ayn Rand Institute has seen sufficient decline in traffic over the past year.
There are a lot of tactics available online to build awareness for ideas, start conversations, educate, spread content, etc. I hope you find this information interesting, and maybe see this as an opportunity to promote ideas yourself through popular channels like your own blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc. If you know of any Objectivist oriented sites/blogs you like to read let me know, I’ll add them to the list.
Other Writing About Objectivism
Staying the Course: ARI 25 Years Later
Simple Tactics to Get Started with Activism
Tips for Asking Good Questions After a Lecture at OCON
What the Heck is This #OCON Thing
Staying the Course: ARI 25 Years Later
Please note: I am writing this as I listen, any items in quotes (often with ellipses where I missed parts) are fragments I am typing in realtime. If anything is unclear, please let me know. I have endeavored not the change the meaning of anything said.
It’s easy to forget how hard it is to keep any organization together and functioning for 5 years, let alone 25. Keeping the mission and vision true, and having the integrity to continue moving an organization in a consistent direction is hard. Tonight, we’re hearing from Michael Berliner, Board Co-Chair and Yaron Brook, President and Executive Director of the Ayn Rand Institute.
“We were never once tempted to compromise, and it’s easy to compromise. Given what we were facing culturally, it took a lot of effort not to water down anything.” – Michael Berliner, during the Q&A session this evening
The Birth of ARI
What are the pre-Institute days, and how did it come about? There was meeting that Ed Synder called in 1983, after trying (and failing) to get a position for Dr.Peikoff at a philosophy department, and he decided it was time to make an effort around academia and the culture.
“Ed was a real entrepreneur, a can-do guy, and he was going to do it and no one was going to get in his way. The intellectuals had the typical reaction ‘oh we can’t do that, how are we going to do that?’ but Ed wouldn’t listen and he just barreled ahead.” – Berliner
Berliner, speaking on why he was chosen to get started directing ARI, mentioned that he had organizational experience in academia and a PhD in philosophy which was important for giving it credibility. Additionally, the group felt that Ayn Rand’s name and brand had recognition and value
Organizational Leadership
Michael Berliner commented on the choice of Yaron Brook as CEO of the institute, and mentioned that he wasn’t well know when he was hired. Brook was (and is) a non-compromiser, Berliner pointed out, and joked that as he was confident that Yaron, as an Israeli, “wouldn’t that anything from anybody”.
Brook was asked by Sean S. whether he expected to see the social change he hoped to achieved in his lifetime, Brook responded “we can start seeing things change in the direction we want to see them change, heading up river… we’re moving in the right direction. We’re in better condition in some ways than I thought we’d be, and worse than others. There’s no alternative for the culture but to be successful in the next 20-25 years”.
Emerging Vision
When ARI began, there wasn’t a long range vision. In fact, the mission of changing the culture when ARI was just one employee in 1985 was extremely daunting. Yaron commented that, “maybe I was young and naive, but I came in and I was like ‘we’re gonna do this’, and that’s still my attitude. But I think its important to think in terms of cultural change, and to note that we already have made a difference and Ayn has already made a difference…. the more you go out and talk to people, the more you discover the leading businessmen in America… just successful people out there… have all been inspired by Ayn Rand. They’re not Objectivists, but they’re better people for having read Ayn Rand.”
“I think America is a much healthier country today, than it would have been without Ayn Rand.” – Yaron Brook
“In 1985 I was surprised if someone knew [who Ayn Rand is], now I’m surprised when someone doesn’t.” -Berliner
Early Memories of the Institute
In the early days, the institute was what Berliner calls “quaint” – the offices were small, minimalistic, and there were no computers… just a phone as far as technology was concerned. The first he was at the office, the phone rang, “Oh great! It was a call meant for the business who had our phone number before that, and not only that… the business was a massage parlor. When I took the job I knew I was going to have to do a lot of multitasking”
Berliner’s wife had a full time job doing research, and it was almost like, “hey kids let’s put on a play” at first.
Ed Synder, who was one of the first members of the board of directors supplied fundraiser, lawyer, and accountant staff to help get things started. The shocking thing, Berliner notes coming out of academia, was that he would call these people up and he would get an answer.
Contrasting the past with today, Berliner remembers what it was like to be by himself getting in at 6am “I’d actually wear a jacket and a tie to work everyday, it’s hard to believe… it was was, kind of quaint, but it was deadly serious and I was on the phone every day multiple times mostly with Harry Binswangers and Peter Schwartz… and we’d discuss the font size of the things we were producing. We needed to show the world that we were a serious, professional organization… we had to live up to that [Ayn Rand] in every way”.
Today ARI has 17,000 square feet of office space and 40 employees in Irvine and another few hundred square feet in Washington D.C. “and we have professionals doing the selection of fonts” quipped Yaron Brook. “It really is an amazing achievement, going from where we were to where we are today”.
Origins of the Essay Contest
Harry Binswanger came up with the idea of the essay contest. It began when The Fountainhead was assigned at Berliner’s daughter’s school – and the students took over the school’s newspaper (!) They didn’t know how widely it was being taught, but they decided to take advantage of teachers’ willingness to teach The Fountainhead. They also felt the target audience, pyschologically, was perfect since adolescents were tring to answer questions like, “who am I? what’s my relatioship with my peers?”
The Anthem essay contest emerged because teachers started coming up to them at tradeshows, suggesting a contest on Anthem… which Berliner says was a real shock, and one of the first times they didn’t have to initiate it themselves.
Ayn Rand Institute Press
They are reducing their focus on publishing, since this isn’t an area of expertise for the Institute. Instead, they’re investing in promoting books published by other authors/publishers. They’ve looked at other think-tanks, and are working on emulating what looks like its working such as finding agents and using them to establish relationships with publishers. They have some expertise in house, and they need to build expertise to increase the marketing power behind these publications when they do go to market. In the next year, they’re looking to bring someone in house to market these publications most effectively. Goals: get them sold, and read by the largest number of people possible.
This is partially a function of the number of new books that are coming out each year, and the necessary division of labor that will make taking these books to market successful.
“It’s still true that books change lives and change minds” – Yaron Brook
Expanding ARI Beyond the United States
The question was about whether ARI has attempted to raise money in India (and other countries). Yaron comments that he thinks the only way to do that would be to go to India, have contracts on the ground, and really dig in since it is already a fulltime job doing what ARI does in the United States. ARI gets very few contributions outside the United States (other than Canada), and people want to make a difference where they live.
It’s certainly worth an effort, and Yaron openly invited the audience to approach him if they’re knowledgeable about how to start making these connections.
Looking Forward to the Future
Keith Schact made the point that it probably was impossible to imagine all the programs, initiatives, and campaigns ARI would put together over the course of 25 years… and invited the panel to look into the future.
“In another 25 years, we could really be — as John Allison likes to say – the dominant secular philosophy, if the world allows us to do it. The changes have been so great at ARI that anything I would guess would probably be too low.” – Berliner
Vision statement for 15 years: Ayn Rand’s ideas, as she understood them, are being discussed everywhere in the culture.
Vision statement for 25 years: Objectivism is the dominant cultural philosophy in the culture.
Tips for Asking Good Questions After a Lecture at OCON
One great aspect of Objectivist Conferences is the opportunity to ask questions of the intellectuals presenting their ideas, immediately following their talks. Coming up with a thoughtful question can add depth to the topic, and help express misunderstandings that might be shared by a lot of the attendees listening. However, Q&A sessions have a limited amount of time, so if you’re going to take it up with your question you might as well do a good job. I personally find it pretty intimidating to get up and ask a question in front of the large audience, however I can tell you a lot from an audience perspective.
Write Down Your Question and Read It Aloud
The time to think up your question is not when the microphone is before your lips. Not having a clearly formulated question can lead to a lot of those “ummm”… “ahhh” moments, which most of us strive to avoid.
I’m not saying that I think most attendees do this, but if you’re reworking your most eloquent presentation until the final moments before its your turn often your question comes off as made up on the spot. Think about how much time the speaker spent crafting their talk, structuring it to keep you engaged and to help you inductively come to conclusions. If you take this same care for your own questions, I think you’ll find it is rewarding to have a speaker say, “that’s a great questions, here’s what I think…” instead of “wait, I’m not following?”
A Declarative Statement is Not a Question
Questions should start with words like “who”, “what”, “where”, “when” and “how”. Why, you ask, is this important? A declarative statement preceding the actual question has a bunch of usability issues for the person being asked:
Unpacking Incorrect Premises
If a declarative statement is made and the speaker doesn’t agree, he’ll feel responsible for responding first to any errors in that statement, before even getting to the question. This can distract from the actual question if it takes longer than 15-20 seconds to deal with, and leaves a lot of speakers asking, “what was the question again?”
Wasting the Audience’s Time
Yes, you probably are a pretty smart cookie but the Q&A session is not the time to show off. Your question really should only require a sentence to express, which is another reason why writing it down is a good idea. Helping the speaker to expand on a particular part of their talk, or bringing to light a perspective that can add depth is the goal – not making a speech about what you think is right. People didn’t pay to hear you talk, if you want them to then consider offering your own speech (elsewhere).
Get Up There and Ask
Finally, I want to encourage anyone reading this to just get up there and do it. It might not be perfect, but I think if you try to follow this advice it will help you put a bit more thought into your question, and that can’t hurt. Remember, conferences are generally benevolent places where people are learning together – so the best thing we can do as attendees, staff, speakers, and those asking questions is help each other become better at understanding the concepts being presented.
Looking forward to many good questions in the coming days! These are just my initial thoughts, I’d love to hear what you think makes for a great question following a lecture in the comments.
