On the other hand, blogs can be created by public officials, and especially elected officials, to let constituents know what stances they are taking and get feedback. Utah Reps. John Dougall, R-American Fork, and Stephen Urquhart, R-St. George, have pioneered these kinds of blogs in the state. For example, Urquhart used his blog Monday to confirm reports that he is considering a run against Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, for a seat in Congress and has received a number of responses within a few days.

But blogging isn't for everyone. Gary Uresk, Woods Cross city administrator, blogged under the name BuildItNowDude on the Legacy Parkway Hotsheet, a site created to discuss issues surrounding the proposed Legacy Parkway, before that site was discontinued two months after it started. He said blogging takes a lot of time, something he lacks as a public official.

"It takes a while to sit and compose your thoughts," he said. "It takes time to do it right and do it justice."

LaVarr Webb, a former managing editor at the Deseret Morning News and current publisher of Utah Policy Daily, an online newsletter, stands at a crossroads of sorts of online traffic about policy in Utah. He said while blogs give public officials the golden opportunity to have a direct line of communication with constituents, blogging takes a lot to become successful.

"It does take a lot of work and effort," he said. "And unless your blog is insightful and provides good information people are interested in, nobody's going to read it." He suggested a good blog needs at least three or four hours of work and two to three posts every week.

But despite the challenges, those officials now blogging give the medium rave reviews. Even Wilf Sommerkorn, director of community and economic development for Davis County, who helped head the Legacy Parkway site, responded to the fall of that blog by creating another, Utah Planners' Corner, which he said is finding a consistent audience.

And although they know they need interesting facts and opinions to maintain readership, many of them express wonder at the amount of people visiting and talking about their sites.

"I had really hoped for just a small little thing to share ideas," Perry said in Cedar Hills. "But in the last little while it has grown much larger than I expected it to."

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E-mail: dhinckley@desnews.com