Blogging is self-publishing.

But publishing is more than just blogging. It's also marketing and promoting. It's a business. (Like TV, from which this picture emerged. You can buy it there, too (hint, hint).)

Most bloggers, like myself, aren't doing this as a business. We're doing this because we care, because we have a crying need to be heard, and no one is paying us to do what we most want to do.

As with everything, blogging works on the 90-10 rule. The best are far better than the rest. And they get 90% of the attention, 90% of the opportunities...no make that 99%. As that TV show song theme said, "They're moving on up..."

For more on the evolution of blogging (ripped from today's headlines) click now.

Politics is the beat that has defined freelance blogging. It's where the money is.

The mainstream media has responded by absorbing these top bloggers into it, simply paying them off. Glenn Reynolds, alias Instapundit, is now at MSNBC, and Kevin Drum, alias Calpundit, is at the Washington Monthly. When the liberal "Air America" debuted this week, bloggers were among the first guests. Bloggers were also honored guests at the Democrats' 'Unity Dinner" last week.

But now they have, in Emeril Lagasse's words, kicked it up a notch.

Take a look at this. It's a Sunday item from the anonymous liberal blogger called Atrios. It describes, in some detail, the interaction between a David Letterman show taping and CNN. It makes some pretty serious charges against CNN and, by extension, against the Bush Administration.

Now take a look at this. It's the April 2 column of Paul Krugman, in The New York Times.

If you're a slow reader, let me cut to the chase. It's the same story.

Krugman doesn't credit Atrios. Maybe he saw the program as well. But Atrios connected the dots, and I refuse to believe that Krugman didn't see his work.

This has been going on for some time. Top bloggers are becoming media darlings. Some are trying to pull the ladder in after them. Others are not.

And if you have an editorial budget in need of a blog, I'm available.