Are traditional publishers necessary in the day of blogs and writing sites?

The debate over print publishing versus internet publishing is ongoing. Traditional publishers, who provide content for magazines, newspapers, books and other media, are vastly different than blogs and writing sites. Still, there is a place for traditional publishers in the day of blogs and writing sites. Here are some of the things that traditional publishers bring to the writing game:

* Accessibility. The fact of the matter is that the majority of people in the world don't have Internet access. As developing countries continue to advance, they will be more and more able to purchase print materials. However, computers are becoming more and more widespread, and eventually it is possible that the majority of the world's population will have Internet access.

* Quality control. Traditional publishers provide some degree or another of editing expertise that often is not found on blogs and writing sites. This doesn't mean that print writing is always of a higher quality than blogs and writing sites, only that, on average, print writing tends to have a more reliable system of separating quality material from non-quality material. Writing sites like Helium are on the vanguard in this area, however, as the ratings system helps to insure that the best writing on a given topic eventually rises to the top.

* Versatility. Sometimes, a given piece of writing or artwork is much more fully experienced in a print medium released by a traditional publisher. Electronic images of some forms of writing aren't nearly as enjoyable as print images. As computer monitors become bigger and better, this may change. As time goes on, fewer and fewer types of writing or artwork fall into this category.

Traditional publishers aren't going the way of the dodo any time soon. In addition, many traditional publishers have decided to cover all of their bases and expand into online publishing. This doesn't mean that traditional publishing is any better than blogs or writing websites, and it doesn't mean the opposite either. It merely demonstrates the way that the markets are changing.