Wall Street Journal contributing editor Peggy Noonan has managed, in one short column, to articulate the relationship between bloggers and mainstream media (MSM), past and present.

“Blogging changes how business is done in American journalism. The MSM isn’t over. It just can no longer pose as if it is The Guardian of Established Truth. The MSM is just another player now. A big one, but a player.”

Noonan lists seven characteristics of the power bloggers wield that distinguish them from MSM, including the following:

• They use the tools of MSM
• They sell original insight
• They are free of MSM constraints including length of content and time-to-publish

Noonan also offers predictions for the future of the MSM-blogging relationship. An enterprising publisher will hire bloggers to keep watch over his own reporters. A reputable reporter will quit his job and start a blog supported by advertising. There’s more, and all of it is must reading.