| Through the uses and gratifications theory, this study investigated the blog reading habits of Jordanian media and journalism students. Focus was given to the amount of time was spent reading blog, which blog categories were read, what motivated the reading of blogs, the students' perspectives on Arabic and English blogs, the students' knowledge of Jordanian media laws, and the relationship between student ender and their motivations in reading blogs. The researcher surveyed 192 Jordanian media and journalism students from Yarmouk University. The most compelling finding is that students are not reading blogs on a regular basis. Few spend more than three hours per week reading blogs to get new information and to learn. Those who do read blogs prefer political blogs. Not surprisingly, given the native language of the students, Arabic language blogs were their preferred blog choices. The students understood what the Jordanian media laws were about. Gender and motivations for using blogs were limited to four areas: relaxation, escape from reality, verification of information found in other media, and the ease or convenience of reading blogs. Future research would examine the relationship between the students' level of English proficiency with their motivations for reading blogs. |
