Farewell, Telegraph Blogs – and thanks for all the stimulation: the new version is simply too dreary to bother reading

I started reading the Telegraph’s blog section about four or five years ago – come to think of it, roughly the same time I started up my own sparkling blog. The newspaper’s site helped me understand what blogs were supposed to look like – it gave me hints about length, style and tone (all of which I was desperately in need of, and probably still am). For about three years Telegraph blogs was my first port of call whenever I sat down at my computer. After a few months of discovering it, I realised that the stuff that was appearing on the blog was a damned sight more interesting than what the newspaper itself was dishing up (apart, of course, from Michael Deacon’s sketches and the Matt cartoon).

Where else could one get regular doses of James Delingpole, Daniel Hannan, Norman Tebbit, Gerald Warner, Douglas Carswell, Damian Thompson, Ed West, Toby Young (yes, I know – he divides opinion), Dan Hodges, Tim Stanley, Peter Mullen and Janet Daley? There was quite a lot of dreary rubbish in the mix – e.g. vapid lefty fembot Mary Riddell, ancient environmentalist crasher Geoffrey Lean and some dreary former Tony Blair advisor whose name I’ve forgotten. But there were never less than three articles worth reading every day.

Then the comments section started being plagued by socialist numbskulls who sounded like ignorant teenagers (then, don’t they all?). Damian Thompson, the blogs editor, got the sack. My two favourite commentators – James Delingpole and Ed West – left to take up better offers. That wonderfully splenetic priest Peter Mullen disappeared (he can now be found in the pages of The Salisbury Review). The site started silting up with stuff from the paper’s fairly dreary political staff. Posts become more irregular, until, starting a few weeks ago, whole days would go by without a single new blog. But, to be honest, by then I was only checking in if someone on my Twitter feed linked to an item worth reading. It took me a couple of weeks to figure out that the newspaper’s online team had shunted most of their blog writers over to the “Comments” section, which resides within the Telegraph’s paywall (thanks for letting readers know – aren’t newspapers supposed to have communications skills?). Fine – I’m a subscriber, so I can access the Comments section. But why should I? It’s dull. Deadly dull.

Five days ago, Daniel Hannan (who, as a politician interested in reaching the widest possible audience, evidently doesn't want to disappear behind any paywall), bade Telegraph online readers farewell in a blog post entitled, “So long and thanks for all the clicks”, explaining that he’d be writing for a new website, CapX (which you can find here):

“Well, chaps, it has been a pleasure. I've enjoyed the interaction and the debate. I've enjoyed being part of what was, while it lasted, without question the premier Right-of-Centre blogs site in the English language.” 

It was indeed. I’m sorry to see it go, but there are many sources of bracing, right-wing insight available these days – including several excellent American sites – so I won’t be wanting for intellectual stimulation. But, when it comes time to renew our Telegraph subscription next year, the paper will probably be wanting us, because I can see absolutely no point in wasting money on a dreary, monotone snoozefest which has decided to stop catering for a broader right-wing readership in favour of once more acting as a cravenly loyal mouthpiece for the Tory Party. That might have been acceptable when the Conservatives were actually worth supporting – but it just won’t wash with Cameron and his clueless crew in charge.

I hope the Telegraph survives long enough to realise that its current strategy is propelling it towards oblivion – it's been part of my daily life for almost 30 years now, and my wife enjoys doing the crossword, so I really don't want it to go to the wall. But, sadly, it’s beginning to feel like a doomed enterprise.