In 2005, Along with Lisa Stone and Jory DesJardins, Elisa Camahort Page founded BlogHer to create opportunities for women bloggers and provide content for women that is sorely lacking in other areas of media (yes, network television, I am talking to you). With more than 13,000 different blogs up and running, and the 3rd annual BlogHer conference around the corner, the female-driven site is less a sorority than it is a cultural phenomena. Elisa, who will be speaking at Mediabistro Circus, recently answered a few questions for us about, you guessed it - blogging.

Let's get right down to it - why do you you think there is a demand for a blogging network catered to women?
After our first conference, we received feedback that told us the [Blogher] community wanted to have a place they could go, in between conferences, to find out what was hot, and about new blogs. We discovered that women have long been siloed - meaning, we have to go to one site to talk about parenting, another to talk about fashion, another to talk politics, another for career. We are interested in all of those things and more, and it's fun - and, more efficient - to find it all in one site.

What kind of progress have you observed in the blogosphere since your launch in 2005?
We threw together the first BlogHer conference to answer a question that simply needed to die: "Where are all the women bloggers?" That question was being asked despite the fact that women already comprised half of the internet users and nearly half of the bloggers. I don't think people ask that question anymore. Women bloggers have really excelled in the last 3 years at raising their voices to shine a spotlight on issues, at taking action, building supportive communities, and even make money doing something they love and are good at. A lot of women are blog swarming their way to the bank and to the ballot box, and that's exciting.

How will the site evolve over the next few years?
Our next design changes will continue the trend of finding new and better ways for community members to connect, to communicate and give props to fellow BlogHers - something our community is not shy about doing. Ever since our launch, we have been about "linking out"... sharing linky-love with as many women bloggers as possible, through our blog directories, or via our contributing editors and their topic round-ups. I notice this same spirit when I issue Calls for Ideas for our conferences. I get as many emails from people nominating others to speak as I get from people submitting themselves for consideration.

How do you keep BlogHer blogs from getting lost in the internet shuffle?
I still happen to believe that content is what matters. Providing easy ways for people to access that content and share it, and to filter it, is important. The second important thing is community. Finding a way to constantly solicit community feedback and input, to act on it, means you have to keep coming up with activities, initiatives and programs that people will want to be a part of and share. Our current Letter to My Body initiative is a great example. After 2 weeks, we had 200 Letters to My Body written by community members, and a lot more people talking about it, reading the letters and sharing the project with others. So, it's not just about a couple of blog posts on BlogHer.com that our editors wrote to start the initiative - it's about providing the space for everyone to participate.

Can you give us a teaser for your presentation at the Circus?
The morning anchors are worried... their audience has been declining steadily, and there aren't any signs that it will stop. Why are women abandoning morning television? According to Nielsen, a 10% decline in morning show viewership is directly attributable to women spending their time on mommyblogs and social networks instead. Women are finding online what the morning shows, newspapers and print magazines aren't delivering. An opportunity to transform their lives and their livelihood.

-Megan Diamondstein