Comments on: Study knocking blogs in Baltimore is fresh meat for. . . bloggers http://www.baltimorebrew.com/2010/01/12/study-knocking-blogs-in-baltimore-fresh-meat-for-bloggers/ Stirring Up Baltimore News and Views Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:16:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: Jessica Durkin http://www.baltimorebrew.com/2010/01/12/study-knocking-blogs-in-baltimore-fresh-meat-for-bloggers/comment-page-1/#comment-9394 Jessica Durkin Thu, 14 Jan 2010 08:05:41 +0000 http://baltimorebrew.com/publish/?p=7772#comment-9394 I have been tracking independent, online news start-ups for eight months at InOtherNews.us, a news directory of sorts. Of the 50 or so outlets in 22 states I have listed so far (Baltimore Brew, I listed you a while back, you're on there), I have come to find that hyperlocals are a) loved by residents who crave news about where they live b) the sites are young -- give them time and money, they'll stick around c) have unique personalities and d) have dedicated staffs who work for nothing in the hope that some day their sweat equity will pay off. All this bodes well for civic engagement. I have issues with the Pew study in that it was conducted with variables relating to traditional media. Everything was as it relates to the dead-tree newspaper. There was one, significant little paragraph among those pages of data in the study: "The new media content in new media, on the other hand, was highly local and mostly locally produced, though, as we will see, it was often brief and derivative of other news accounts. More than eight out of ten of the postings or stories (85%) were locally focused." Jessica Durkin Scranton, PA Founder, InOtherNews.us I have been tracking independent, online news start-ups for eight months at InOtherNews.us, a news directory of sorts.

Of the 50 or so outlets in 22 states I have listed so far (Baltimore Brew, I listed you a while back, you’re on there), I have come to find that hyperlocals are a) loved by residents who crave news about where they live b) the sites are young — give them time and money, they’ll stick around c) have unique personalities and d) have dedicated staffs who work for nothing in the hope that some day their sweat equity will pay off.

All this bodes well for civic engagement. I have issues with the Pew study in that it was conducted with variables relating to traditional media. Everything was as it relates to the dead-tree newspaper.

There was one, significant little paragraph among those pages of data in the study:

“The new media content in new media, on the other hand, was highly local and mostly locally produced, though, as we will see, it was often brief and derivative of other news accounts. More than eight out of ten of the postings or stories (85%) were locally focused.”

Jessica Durkin
Scranton, PA
Founder, InOtherNews.us

]]> By: drizell http://www.baltimorebrew.com/2010/01/12/study-knocking-blogs-in-baltimore-fresh-meat-for-bloggers/comment-page-1/#comment-9342 drizell Wed, 13 Jan 2010 00:31:24 +0000 http://baltimorebrew.com/publish/?p=7772#comment-9342 The problem with Baltimore's blogosphere is that there is seemingly little communication between blogs and no central location where the blog postings are located. In Tacoma, where I moved here from, there are about 30 blogs whose content are automatically fed to a central feed. Check it out: www.feedtacoma.com. People who may be loyal to one blog do not always get the story because blog doesn't always repost content from elsewhere (BaltimoreBrew, I'm talking to you!!!). One of the reasons Curbed (NYC) is so successful is that it links to other blogs, so you get a ton of information each and every day, whereas here in Bmore, you have to check each and every individual blog to check for new content. The problem with Baltimore’s blogosphere is that there is seemingly little communication between blogs and no central location where the blog postings are located. In Tacoma, where I moved here from, there are about 30 blogs whose content are automatically fed to a central feed. Check it out: http://www.feedtacoma.com. People who may be loyal to one blog do not always get the story because blog doesn’t always repost content from elsewhere (BaltimoreBrew, I’m talking to you!!!). One of the reasons Curbed (NYC) is so successful is that it links to other blogs, so you get a ton of information each and every day, whereas here in Bmore, you have to check each and every individual blog to check for new content.

]]> By: dan http://www.baltimorebrew.com/2010/01/12/study-knocking-blogs-in-baltimore-fresh-meat-for-bloggers/comment-page-1/#comment-9326 dan Tue, 12 Jan 2010 18:47:07 +0000 http://baltimorebrew.com/publish/?p=7772#comment-9326 None of the critiques of this study change the fact that there is vastly less original reporting going on than there was in 1991. For a city like Baltimore, the inevitable result is more corruption, as pols and other decisionmakers are under less and less scrutiny. And, as they realize that they can completely control the media narrative with their press releases, because most news outlets do not have the time for or interest in further reporting. None of the critiques of this study change the fact that there is vastly less original reporting going on than there was in 1991. For a city like Baltimore, the inevitable result is more corruption, as pols and other decisionmakers are under less and less scrutiny. And, as they realize that they can completely control the media narrative with their press releases, because most news outlets do not have the time for or interest in further reporting.

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