What went wrong with bloggers?

In the October 4 issue of Newsweek (funny how they postdate their magazine, as if they want us to believe they're predicting the future), Steven Levy writes:

"Name calling and intolerance of opposing points of view have reached epidemic levels on Web logs.... What went wrong? In part, it's the same reason that traditional media sometimes fall short on their civic duty: the low road is a well-trodden path to big readership.... We were promised a society of philosophers. But the Blogosphere is looking more and more like a nation of ankle-biters." ("Memo to Bloggers: Heal Thyselves," Newsweek, October 4, 2004)

Blog to Mr. Levy: We never promised you a society of philosophers, and even if we had, who said philosophers shouldn't bite ankles?