Why do they blog?

Basically for therapy, was the biggest answer to a recent AOL survey of 600 bloggers. "About 31% of bloggers said that, in times of high anxiety, instead of seeking any counseling, they either write in their blogs or read blogs of others facing similar issues," according to CNET's report on the survey. It's gratis, virtual group therapy - provided others are "listening" and posting. Other reasons cited by respondents: because of an interest in journalism (16%), to stay on top of news and gossip (12%), and to expose political information (8%). As for teen bloggers, I suspect AOL Community VP Bill Schreiner got closest to their motivation in his explanation for the findings: "In a way, blogs serve as oral history. When it comes to sharing blogs and reading other people's blogs, we like to connect with people, learn about their lives, and find common ground. There's no pressure to write about a particular subject or keep blogs maintained a certain way, and it's not necessarily a popularity contest" (see AOL's press release.