Photo journalism student Jan Ferrer (photo by Eric Lawson)
Life isn’t perfect, and neither is the power supply at SFSU. About 20 minutes into my first class at state on “Intro to Online Journalism,” the lights — and computers — went dark. Still the brightness of my students (you saw that coming) made up for the temporary outage.
To test/assess their abilities, I didn’t waste any time with their first in-class assignment: pair off, spend 5 minutes each interviewing one another about their passion and plans for journalism, and then post a mini profile online … in 20 minutes. I gave them no tips, no suggestions, no real guidance on how to do this. I was purposely vague. I told them they’d get points for creativity.
Despite hearing some deep sighs during those 20 minutes, the class, for the most part, delivered.
Although I haven’t closely reviewed all the assignments, several caught my eye for their creativity or execution. Like the classroom’s electrical system, none were perfect, but they did (wait for it) illuminate in my mind the potential of these aspiring journalists.
Here are links to a few; bear in mind they had all of 25 minutes to do this.
By Jan Ferrer (told in 140 characters, more or less)
http://twitter.com/TheFakeEricLaw
By Jenn Hernandez
http://jenz.vox.com/library/post/an-exercise-in-imagery-profile-on-lauren-crabb.html
By Eric Lawson
http://deathbycamera.com/janferrer/
Of course, the really big assignment is the hyper local blog on SFSU we’re attempting this semester. For homework, students will be reading the following articles (and if you have suggestions for other articles on hyper local, please e-mail me or let me know in the comments).
Fast Company: Can anyone tap $100 billion potential of hyper local?
New York Times: Hyper local deliver news without newspapers
Buzz Machine: Newbiznews – hyperlocal
New York Times: A latte with journalism on the side
NYT blog: Wash Post ends hyper local experiment
Also as part of the homework, students need to analyze actual hyper local sites, including this one out of UC Berkeley’s grad school for journalism:
Separately, here is a link to the class syllabus:
Comment on Fast Company:
Local blogs or websites would have more credibility if the New York Times licensed the “Local” platform to them, but I believe they would have to have some oversight over the content and this might make bloggers weary. I think it would be excellent to have professionals fact checking and confirming information on these blogs, but this would take a lot of man-power.
I guess some reporting system could be set up where the public could report errors to a Times editor. If the blog continued to publish inaccurate information, then they could be removed from the franchise.
One important question: Would the Times be responsible for content of these franchised blogs in the event that it is libelous? Some contract specifications would need to be worked out so the Times would not be responsible.
On a positive note, making blogs and hyper local sites more credible via platforms from major media would promote local news, which the mass media has been struggling to cover due to the shrinking newsroom and conglomeration of local news agencies into regional news agencies.
Comment on Hyper Local w/o Newspapers:
I don’t know if local small businesses would want to pay to advertise on these hyper local sites. First, you would have to establish a substantial local reader base and you would have to prove to the business that advertising to these readers would bring in customers. I could see larger local companies advertising, but not small businesses unless it was really cheap to do so.
Does Everyblock even have any ads?
Sites like Everyblock are helpful to get general information about an area, but I dislike the lack of details and I would not trust that the information is correct. Also, the website still seems so impersonal.
Still, Everyblock is a way for other hyper locals to get noticed because the site, which is known nationally, provides links to stories on their sites.
Does anyone know MSNBC’s plans for Everyblock and if things will change or if content will become more specific or fleshed out by an actual reporter?
Comment on NewBizNews:
I definitely agree that these sites must network to attract larger advertising companies. The hyper local sites need to be aggregated into some regional networking system.
Comment on NYT “Latte”:
This Czech model is an amazing concept for interactive journalism. It will empower people to speak out and be heard through a credible source. This truly is where journalists become the voice of the people.
I think the proximity will be a key element that could make this plan be unique and thus flourish at least on the content end of the equation. The public will better understand the way the newsroom works and the newsroom will better understand what the public wants to know.
Though Google’s AdSense may be a foe to the news business, contextual ads may be the best way for these hyper locals to stay afloat.
Comment on Washington Post’s failed experiment:
Again, these sites are going to have to share advertising revenues with some contextual or geography-centered advertising provider like Google or AOL.
Does anyone see a different way?
No one wants to pay for reporters, editors or marketing anymore. I think this is a do-it-yourself age and I think people prefer reading local blogs by non-journalists. Still, one of the previous articles made a good point that these public run blogs often cite professional media.
I think the franchise option is the best solution for reputable and accurate content and combined with contextual advertising, hopefully the hyper local site could at least cover costs, who knows how they could be profitable.
(NOTE: They don’t let journalism students take business or marketing classes to fulfill the minor requirement for graduation.)
I think readers would prefer news written by the public with fact checking and guidance provided by professional reporters and editors.
This method would give the public more faith in both professional media and publicly ran media.
Comment on Fast Company:
I don’t necessarily agree that companies like the NY Times and AOL should invade small, suburban communities and take over the blog world. The reason blogs have become so powerful is because it is the people of the community, the people who know their town or city best, that gain the trust of other residents. When large media corporations roll into town they are seeking to profit off of a community that they aren’t familiar with. Therefore, there are situations where locals try to sabotage the blog by giving false information which leads to the problem of accuracy. Bloggers will also have to worry about censorship from large media corporations.
Comment on Hyperlocal without newspapers:
Hyperlocal blogs seem to be very helpful to residents of a small are. For example, someone in San Francisco probably doesn’t care that a sandwich shop in Portland failed a health inspection. Each blog is target a very specific area and I think it will help to boost local, small business advertising but there needs to be some assistance to connect the two. I don’t believe hyperblogs could ever take the place of professional media because without the media they wouldn’t survive.
Comment on NewBizNews:
I think that hyperlocal blogs will give local businesses the ability to target their customer base. Hopefully, the pricing will be more affordable than traditional newspaper advertisements.
Comment on Latte with journalism on the side:
The Czech is very innovative and interactive in its plan to combine the public with the world of journalism. The fact that readers and journalists can work together through the cafes will insure that the needs of the community are addressed.
Comment on Washington Post:
The Washington Post’s failed experiment in hyperlocal blogging could be a warning to the other large media outlets who are starting to create hyperblogs. There needs to be a better model for how the companies can create substantial revenue through local, target-based advertising. I think the companies should pair with local bloggers that know the community best instead of hiring outside reporters. The companies can then act as a fact-checker for the blogs.
lots of the reading for me was spent asking questions and thinking about all sides of the card:
** fastcompany
- “They’re worried,” explains the Local’s Kelley, “about the big media companies coming in and taking up [their local sites'] advertising dollars.” > is this conglomercy at its best?
- billions are not migrating to the hyperlocal > so why the interest in the first place?
- the interest and the potential is there, but not realized just yet; how come is not as successful as it could be?
- ad model not perfect; so when will it be? maybe the same problems are perpetuating newspapers and blogging, really
- how do we gain $, getting traffic to site, but not compromising integrity of the writing featured?
- the idea that we try to “create a vibrant content site with an engaged audience” is vital
** nytimes
- ‘without involving traditional journalists’ > how come?
- targeting for ad revenue is important, but the paradox in how to reach more; why?
- someone mentioned that they have a ‘liberal definition on what is news’ – how can this be flexible and harmful?
- if you’re linking to other sites (outside.in), does it limit how much people are knowing? where is the work, diversity, other perspectives or a second opinion? – “One hurdle is the need for reliable, quality content.” – we also should be asking how blogs will survive if newspapers actually do go under – are newspapers more important than we are giving them credit for? are we overhyping our own story?
** buzzmachine
- the main question in starting a hyperblog is, what model do you use for the hyperlocal? and what scrutiny will you come under fire for?
- what is your multiple step plan for success?
- the questions being asked in this article suggests that journalists are now being breeded and expected to take on more skills
** ny times (latte)
- why has the ‘need’ for hyperlocal been popularized now? shouldn’t it always have been the case? (editors always want their reporters to build their network and contact sheets)
- “The position of the journalist is not just to be observing and writing something on the newspaper or on the Web, but also to help people have the tools to do something in their community.”
** wash post
- the basis of a sale background is deemed important; where is the line drawn?
Comment on Hyper Locals -
It seems as if the main focus is always advertising. To get hyper local sites up and running, and to KEEP them up and running, we need to figure out a way to advertise. NY Times states that when the target audience is smaller the advertising revenue decreases because less people are seeing it. But at the same time, why not have a heavy focus on local business advertisements. In turn, the people they are advertising to are the ones that would actually visit these business in the first place.
On a larger scale, it helps advertisers to invest in respected names like Google and the NY Times. Although the Washington Post failed, it was still experimentation and it’s to early to say weather or not it will work. Lots of faith needs to be put into dedicated journalists in each of our communities. Also with the help of Police, Fire Departments, and other local agencies, news could be gathered and spread much more efficiently.
Fast Company:
I think hyperlocal news sites seem to be the next big thing when it comes to people wanting to find out what is going on in their neighborhood. I like to believe there is a sense of trust between the people who write them and the people who read them. These hyperlocals make it kind of personal and more of a community feeling type thing.
As I was reading, I was thinking if Wikipedia would be considered something of a hyperlocal. I mean, the website is basically made up of people who write things on the web page and that in turn, gives people knowledge about things they want to know (whether it’s a major news event thing or something simply as a word).
News without Newspapers:
I sometimes hear that we might have to start paying for using websites in order to gain access to them. I know that we pay for the Internet as a whole, but with the way things are going, will we have to start paying for these hyperlocal news sites as well? Or any sites of that matter since everything are pretty much going online such movies, TV shows, buying and selling things, ect.
Newbiznews
Hyperlocal news would probably be a great success if they can convince local businesses to place ad on their web page. That way when locals go on the website they would see ads from businesses nearby and it would hopefully create more revenue for that business and more readerships for the website or money to keep the website going.
A latte with journalism on the side
This idea seems pretty interesting. It’s important for people to know what is going on in their neighborhoods, so they can take the necessary actions if needed. But despite almost everything going on the web, I think the one thing that might stay afloat is news broadcasting. I know we have a department of broadcasting on campus and I think it would be nice if maybe we could have journalism students also take a class on broadcasting as well. It would seem hard to believe of news broadcasting going out of business soon, so that could be a another way of telling stories.
Washington Post:
30 years ago, it was probably easy to identify who was a journalist. Nowadays, it seems that anyone can be a journalist and with the newspapers folding, creating news websites online are becoming easy because founders are hiring people who don’t have much experience in journalism. They are just looking for someone who knows the neighborhood well or at least a journalist who is familiar with the area. I think readers want to read stories from people who know their neighborhood well, like they have been living there for some time. Not just someone who lives in a different town and just comes in every other week or simply calls in to see what is new.
I definitely agree (and was frustrated) that the key to the success of a “hyperlocal” journalism is advertising money. There are so many aspects of this new brand of news that i think are beneficial; the best one being the interweaving of journalists and communities as was mentioned in the “latte with journalism” article. Giant media companies going out of business presents a great opportunity to make common people more involved with the news about them. I think the more focused an outlet’s audience, the better it can know them. Obviously, a newspaper writer who reports on only one street with 10 houses would know every one of his subjects very well.
The problem is reporters and resources are a lot of money especially if an outlet is producing well-done journalism. The model I imagine as ideal (though maybe unrealistic) is one in which the advertising is also very local. For this there would have to be a conscious decision on the part of a community to want a local news site (this also seems unrealistic). I really hope that some site gets huge and sets an example as to the benefits i think hyper local news can have. It will definitely take that first site being backed by some giant company like Google. The sites like “everyblock” that are somewhat successful and sustainable still don’t have the resources to have serious in-depth reporting.
Good comments. Keep them coming!
After reading these articles I realized that our site has to as specific as possible. It needs to focus on certain subjects and not stray away from SFSU related stories.
Fastcompany.com:
I think local businesses will want to consider advertising in hyperlocal sites because many of them already pass out flyers on campus or local neighborhoods. People don’t really look at the flyers and tend to throw them away after taking them.
Nytimes- “hyperlocal web sites deliver news without newspapers”
Having links to local blogs can expand the content of the site and will likely be visited more if people can find everything about their neighborhood on one site.
Buzzmaching-
Having specialized parts of the websites like different areas such as for students, staff and residents will make the website more useful.
Nytimes- “A latte with journalism on the side”
Working and interacting directly with other SFSU students and staff will help us get a sense of what information needs to be told and what stories might appeal to them.
Nytimes- “Washington Post ends hyperlocal news experiment”
Data posted on the website after being cited from a source will need to be put into context for the reader. If it isn’t the reader will not get the entire information needed to understand the data or story given.
I think Hyperlocal blogs are a very good idea. It’s a shame that the Washington Post’s hyperlocal blog did not work out. It seems that hyperlocal blogs (hlb’s) might be part of the future of journalism. They have the potential of being big competition to larger regional news corporations like CBS 5 and KTVU.com. The fabulous thing about hlb’s is the proximity of the stories. They are literally stories from one’s backyard.
Latte with journalism on the side: I don’t like this idea very much. I see the benefit of it but overall, i don’ think it would survive here in the states. The greatest benefit of an idea like this is finding a story without having to go far. However, this is a lazy way to find a story. The best way to really look for a story is talking to people and going around town to do so. personally, i cannot wait to see the future of hlb’s.
Hyperlocal news is probably the best recent alternative to the dying newspaper industry. However, there can be some pitfalls in hyperlocal news that I realized when I read the articles. For example, NewBizNews described their model for Hyperlocal site suggesting bloggers and journalist collaborate together. I think their should be a filter that allows journalistic articles to be the main source of news. I’m not saying that hyperlocal sites should not have blogs. It’s just that there is already enough blog sites about news around and if hyperlocal news is trying to imitate journalism but a more localized version, it should stick to journalistic articles so the site doesn’t loose credibility.
Another advantage of hyperlocal news is that some sites are helping to revive local advertising. I like the idea that some hyperlocal news sites are inviting mom and pop shops that are not use to advertising online to advertise on their site. However, lack of revenue especially for new hyperlocal sites can also be an issue like explained on the “Washington Post Ends Hyperlocal News Experiment” article. Maybe a temporary solution to this problem, especially for beginning hyperlocal websites, is donation money. A few independent news sites in the Bay Area are run through donations, and perhaps it can kick start a local hyperlocal site, and further gain the communities interest.
It would be interesting to dig up some more statistics about the amount of advertising dollars waiting to be spent in hyper local markets. It seems the consensus indicates the money is there, but the facts in these stories do not speak so loudly. I hope the hidden treasure is there.
If the money is there, why are these new sites still hobbling? The explanation that these sites cannot afford the cost of courting advertisers does not seem to convincing.
The fact that advertisers don’t see these new hyper local sites as lucrative enough to invest advertising dollars in is a little more convincing. We need to convince them otherwise.
That said, can a news website survive on ad revenues alone? It seems impossible to require consumers to pay for viewing a website when there are so many avenues to get free information. A massive, nation wide, concerted effort on the part of all news publishers would be the only way to reign in consumer revenue, but that seems highly unlikely to say the least.
I believe when we find the ideal advertising model for these sites the whole newspaper industry will flourish from it. These hyper local sites serve as a microcosm for the entire industry.
It seems to me that a nationwide network of all the hyper local sites would provide a great way to exchange information and decide on a standard for advertisers.
My favorite thing about hyper local sites is that they bring people back to small town local newspapers. The appeal of these hyper locals is that they know their readers well and they can cater to the type of news that the readers are interested in reading.
I agree that hyperlocal blogs can be a big part of the future of journalism. Although the hyperlocal blog, or HBLs, is still in its infancy, the concept does seem promising.
-Tapping into local business advertising is where folks see dollar signs. Getting these businesses to put there ads (and money) where it might not see much traffic at first is a challenge. However, the idea that ads are being viewed by possible local patrons could be a selling point.
-Blogs and bloggers can be helpful to spread news. The concern is that they are not always a legitimate source for news and are not held to the same standards. The Times has the right idea by having an editor involved, but this may be a harder model for smaller HBLs to follow.
As a consumer of media, I love the hyperlocal movement. Sites like everyblocksf and townme make me feel like my community is important–something that a mainstream news source cannot attain. As a journalism student, what scares me about the hyperlocal movement (and most online media, for that matter) is that the sites are not supported by users, but instead by advertisers or are not profitable at all.
The fastcompany article touches on this subject as it describes various online entrepreneurs “groping for a business model,” suggesting that local advertisers will soon be making the migration from TV and print to the internet. I think this is a good idea from a profit perspective, but it poses a possible conflict of interest. With hyperlocal blogs striving to chronicle the community by gathering information on businesses among other things, one could wonder if hyperlocal sites would feature a business in a better light is they were advertisers (as is seen on yelp).
From a news perspective, I think that hyperlocal sites are going to be very important in the changing industry. As media outlets shrink, they are publishing more wire stories and have less resources to do truly local journalism. This has left communities craving a voice. The “Latte” article sums up this plight very well, discussing the demand for local journalism in Europe and the struggle to find a profitable way to provide it.
There is no doubt that good journalism is necessary in creating and maintaining an accountable government. There is also no doubt that in order to get good journalism, reporters need to get paid.
Hyperlocal $:
While there is lots of advertising money scattered in bits in communities across the nation, I do not think it will be so easy for large newspapers to become part of that movement and turn enough of a profit to save the newspaper industry. If large newspapers are to take on this endeavor, there are a few things to keep in mind.
- Community newspapers rarely make money. Most of them are usually made up of journalists who live in these communities and so have a vested interest in serving their neighborhoods regardless of the little pay they might receive for their work. The reason they keep going is because the people involved are less interested in money and more in serving their communities. Will major newspapers stick around in these communities and continue to deliver even through the lean periods?
- Most of these community papers barely get by as it is, which makes me believe that not all communities will be able to sustain hyperlocal manifestations of major newspapers, in addition of their original small papers. In many places one of the two will have to loose, and most likely, the major newspaper running a hyperlocal project will have a more solid foundation to sustain the lean periods, while the smaller newspapers usually have lesser resources. This whole move could backfire and kill the truly hyperlocal voices.
News without Newspapers:
Very good idea to deliver highly focused information in this way. Saves readers time scanning and searching for information when such readers might not know what is out there available on the local blogosphere. While these sites certainly do not replace the news organizations that provide original content, and they also might link readers to incomplete information or “trivial and sometimes irrelevant blog posts,” they nonetheless gather a variety of voices from the local communities, and that is a news related service that is worth something to the readers.
Buzz Machine:
This article is a good analysis on the things we need to know (or need to find out!) about how to make hyperlocal a sustainable new business model, while at the same time maintaining a realistic awareness that the news business will not be saved by just any one model, but it may take a variety of different approaches to bring in the new era of profitable news delivery.
News with your latte:
- I’m somewhat skeptical of this idea. I think it is a good intention to have the community involved and they should always feel free to call or visit their local paper to tip reporters on what is going on and pass on information these journalists may not have otherwise heard. However, the people in the community who have the interest to contribute to their newspapers usually have no problem finding the avenues to make their voices heard. These are the people that write the letters to the editor, make the calls with tips and leave comments on the website. Except that now by having them in close proximity, they will be able to disrupt journalists at work. I believe every person in the public should have a voice, protected by our freedom of speech, but I also believe that it takes a very special set of skills to report facts without opinion, and to expect any person, who literally wonders off the street, to have something solid to contribute to a newspaper is wrecklessly optimistic. I believe there might be some benefits to the idea, but journalists would have to spend a whole lot of time sifting through mud and faulty tips before finding a gem, taking away precious time from the work. Everyone has an axe to grind and this could be a motivation for many in the public to come in and suggest a story.