We write our work online but, after we finish, what do we call it? Is it an article? Is it a blog post? Or, perhaps, is it both?

1. S​hould I Call This an Article or a
Blog Post?
by: ​Kyle Jones
Sometimes ­ maybe even often
times ­ I have a habit of
over­thinking things. This is
especially true when editing my
own writing. Did I say this right or
have I said that incorrectly. Do I
place a comma here or do I
place a comma there? And the
questions go
on­and­on­and­on­etc., etc., etc.
One recently recurring question
has been what I should call what
you’re reading right now. Is this
an article? Is it a post? Not sure?
Should I call this an article or a
post?
Still not sure? Maybe it is a non­issue, or maybe it is something worth exploring. For the
purpose of this post and/or article, I choose the assumption that it IS worth a bit of exploring
or investigation.
What is an Article?
Let’s take a moment and define the word ​article​. The ​Google Dictionary​ defines the word as:
a piece of writing included with others in a newspaper, magazine, or other publication.
So, based on the example definition above, a blog post would fall into the “or other
publication” category; therefore, would it not be acceptable to consider this work an article?

2.
What is a Post?
A search of ​post via several online dictionaries revealed definitions in the traditional sense of
the word. Those included information about physical locations, columns made of wood, and
several others.
A search on “​blog post​” took me to ​Wikipedia.org​ and I found the following:
A ​blog (a truncation of the expression ​weblog​) is a discussion or informational site
published on the ​World Wide Web and consisting of discrete entries ("posts") typically
displayed in reverse chronological order (the most recent post appears first).
These discrete entries are synonymous with posts.
The Question Isn’t New
Next, I Googled the following as part of my research: should i call it a blog post or an article?
The first entry, dated February 24, 2010, linked to ​dailywritingtips.com​. The work, written by
Eric Cummings, began by saying:
My co­blogger and I have come across an interesting usage problem. We don’t know
what to call what we write.
He describes my own question and did just as I did above ­ defined the words. (This is
evidence, my friends, that there is (practically) no original idea.) Eric goes on to say that he
still isn’t sure how to name work; however, he echoes my own thought as to how one might
choose to label them.
Categorize Your Work
One option would be the following. I choose to use the word article as the professional term
and, on the opposite, post as a personal. For example, I wrote an article about performance
on ​PerformanceICreate.com​, but I wrote a post about Doctor Who on my own blog.
● Article ­ Leans toward professional or researched content
● Post ­ Personal or non­researched content
Or, could it be that it doesn’t really matter either way?

3. Your Opinion
What do you think? Does it matter if you call work posted on a blog an article or a post? Are
we splitting the proverbial hairs? Let me know in the comments.
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/post­entry­or­article/
About Author:
I am a longtime fan of Doctor Who, comic books, & gadgets. I am a Corporate Recruiter for C
Spire, Co­Social Media Director for Mississippi SHRM, and blogger. I write for
performanceicreate.com​ and am a co­host of ​Doctor Who: Podshock​.