Now, the next installment in Extreme Mortman’s regular feature: a peek inside the blog-reading habits of our nation’s top reporters and media celebrities. Today, straight from the U.S. Department of Journalism — otherwise known as the Washington Post — it’s Chris Cillizza, the skyrocketing must-read superstar of web political reporting.

Chris came to Washingtonpost.com in September 2005. He was hired to write “The Fix” — the website’s blog on all things politics. The goal of the blog is to be one-stop shopping for political junkies. Prior to joining Washingtonpost.com, Chris spent four years at Roll Call covering House and Senate campaigns as well as the White House. His first job after graduating from Georgetown in 1998 was with Charlie Cook of the Cook Political Report.

And now, Chris Cillizza — here’s what he tells Extreme Mortman he reads:

I’d like to first say a word about the term “blog.” I think it is far too narrowly defined by most people including many who frequent these sites regularly. Blog does not equal opinion. Many blogs are opinionated — especially political blogs that see things through a liberal or conservative lens — and there is clearly a need and a market for them. But I think there is also a place for blogs like The Fix — reporting-driven news sites that offer a bit more voice and tone than the print newspaper but don’t veer into the realm of opinion. Other newspapers (Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer, Cleveland Plain Dealer) also now have blogs in which their reporters provide the content.

With that off my chest, let’s take a scroll down my bookmark list:

Reporter-Driven Blogs
The Swamp (Chicago Tribune)
Dick Polman’s American Debate (Philadelphia Inquirer)
On Call (The Hotline’s Blog)
Openers (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
CQ Politics (Congressional Quarterly)

Opinion Blogs
Daily Kos
MyDD
Powerline

Media Blogs
Fishbowl DC
Romenesko
Public Eye

State Based Political Blogs
I think this is a fascinating element of the blogosphere. When I travel to states to do reporting for The Fix, I try to find a few blogs that are widely read by the political class. Take for example my trip to South Carolina last month. South Carolina politicos are blog-crazy. The two most popular are “Faith In The Sound” and “The Laurin Line.” I think these state-based blogs can really give you a great sense of what political people in the states are talking about. The Post has a terrific state-based, reporting driven blog of its own in the “Richmond Report,” which Michael Shear writes.

Miscellaneous Blogs
Mystery Pollster
Achenblog (I am promoting the Post here but Joel Achenbach is absolutely
hilarious)
Barone Blog

Non-Blogs That Rock (and that I read on my blackberry on the way to work)
NBC’s First Read
ABC’s The Note
CNN’s Mornining Grind
and Hotline’s Wake Up and Last Call (expertly done by Danielle Jones)