The 2.0 Critic: Blended Discourses in Blogging

Although traditional critics remain a reliable source, they are losing influence to online reviews produced by technology-empowered consumers. This study aims to analyze this new form of critic that have emerged with Web 2.0 and who post technical reviews based on personal experiences. We conducted a qualitative study, following netnographic and content analysis protocols in a case study of the Brazilian blog 2Beauty.com.br, which has product reviews as core content. As a contribution, we define the 2.0 Critic and its composed narrative forms—Friend, Salesperson, Connoisseur, Hacker and Examiner—which point to an expert alternative position in the ecosystem.