"I am excited about it," said Dutson, who runs a Web site design company out of his Searsmont home and blogs at www.mainewebreport.com. "It's an interesting and positive development and shows a pretty progressive attitude toward the changing media landscape."

Media Blogger Association, a 1,000-member group that got two reserved seats, will rotate Dutson and other members through the seats for the 6- to 8-week trial that begins Tuesday. Several individual bloggers have also been credentialed, a court official said. ...

... "The critical thing is the work that people are doing, whether they're called bloggers or journalists" said Bill Mitchell, editor of Poynter Online, the online arm of The Poynter Institute, a continuing education program for journalists. "If they are gathering news, then I don't think there's any particular reason to deny them access. If it's a matter of space, then people have to make that decision. But I certainly wouldn't exclude bloggers for their lack of affiliation with a media company."
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