It is ad-free, in a way. But I wonder if there's still some advertising going on. A blog is, after all, a form of self-promotion. As advertising students, we are told again and again the importance of having an online presence – a personal brand – to sell ourselves to future employers. A blog is a good way to do this, just like a web page is a good way to do this, a twitter account is a good way to do this, a blemish-free facebook page is a good way to do this.
A blog, unlike twitter and a webpage somewhat, enables its writers to ramble on as much as they choose. Rex could easily just post the answer to the crossword. Maybe he could just post the answers and how long it took him. But this blog is about more than just the answers to the puzzle. It's about Rex, too.
I would also consider his blog to be an advertisement for the NY Times crossword puzzle, and the paper as a whole, since they come together. If someone who is so seriously dedicated to crosswording chooses to do the one from the NY Times, it must be great. It's definitely good promotion for the NY Times.
Personally, I found today's puzzle impossible to solve. However, any answer that leads to this
being posted on Rex's blog is fine by me.
As far as interactivity goes, a fan sent in this:
a hand-stitched rendition of the first solved crossword Rex ever posted. If that's not getting involved with the brand, I don't know what is.
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