Feedster Launches Top 500 Blog List, But Does Not Show Its Criteria

Feedster has launched a new Feedster Top 500 Blog list (nope, we didn't make it) that's causing lots of blog grumbling.

The criteria for the Feedster list has not been published on the site. They say it's not based solely on links, but what is it based on? Does it cover only those blogs whose feeds Feedster reads? Does it include or exclude blogs that don't have their own domain? Are the links counted over a day? A week? A month?

We're in good company with other top blogs not on the list, like BusinessWeek's Blogspotting, Business Blog Consulting, Jason Calcanis, Romenesko, and many more.

Feedster gives away a badge the 500 can post on their blogs, providing Feedster some free promotion.

What's the point of lists?
It's hard to see the point of these lists. When they require votes, nominees skew the results when they email their friends and ask their readers to vote for them, since most voting sites let the same IP address vote more than once. Links and trackbacks make more sense. But the traffic spikes that result from particularly controversial posts tend to skew those results. It seems lists are mainly marketing tools for those who issue them.

blogging, Feedster