Comments on: Creating Community Through Relevant Local Information

By: Tak Hikichi

Tak Hikichi — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 02:46:21 +0000

Christine,
I just began a hyper local blog for my city, hoping to involve more local folks to exchange information locally, and your article was at great timing. Only one out of 4 to 5 local publications I read offers RSS updates and others still have old MS Frontpage websites. I wanted to be connected more locally and thought I’d have to write a blog, urging others to embrace local search concepts.

By: greg cryns

greg cryns — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:12:26 +0000

Thanks for a very interesting article. I’ve had local sites of my own for many years.

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:12:06 +0000

Elaine, wonderful examples! Very interesting to witness successful reinvention of news delivery and integration into the fabric of a community. I believe there is tremendous potential with these concepts. Thank you.

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:06:59 +0000

Sharon, thanks for these two ideas.
The wiki one is particularly intriguing as it facilitates collaboration. I can see it working effectively with greater participation.
The regional website maintained by a larger interested entity [like a c of c] is interesting, too. Thanks for the Lake Sunapee example.

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:56:59 +0000

Matt, thanks for the hitwise info for Liverpool. Very interesting to observe that level of localised information.

By: Elaine

Elaine — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 16:24:48 +0000

The organization I work for has spent the last several years addressing exactly this issue. Please visit http://www.newspapernext.org for all kinds of free (and one small paid) resources.
I also direct you to an actual newspaper that’s becoming its community’s Complete Community Connection (which they refer to as C3): The Gazette in Cedar Rapids, IA. Their change agent’s critical blog: http://www.stevebuttry.wordpress.com. Look for his Blueprint for the Complete Community Connection.

By: Sharon Elin

Sharon Elin — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:13:34 +0000

I'm wondering if a wiki would be a good vehicle for adding information about a local region... especially for permanent information such as local attractions. Current news could have a page that is in flux daily or weekly. Another option is a regional website, maintained by a Chamber of Commerce or any interested party. Here's an example from Lake Sunapee, NH: http://www.lake-sunapee-living.com/

By: Matt Churchill

Matt Churchill — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:09:05 +0000

Hitwise released some local data for Liverpool - http://weblogs.hitwise.com/robin-goad/2009/06/local_internet_data_liverpool.html I think that the more localised services can be made, the more useful they will be so the more people will use them.

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:09:04 +0000

KJ Rodgers, I think you’re right and local is growing fast. I’m really intrigued with what the New York Times has creates with ‘The Local.’ It’s part of a transformation in how we think, absorb information, interpret it, and use it to connect with others around us. It’s definitely a work in progress!
Thanks for contributing.

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:06:46 +0000

led panel – thank you.

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:05:42 +0000

Cap’n, relevant information leads to a sense of community – something missing from many small towns. New social media tools – like blogs – offer a means for gathering all of that common relevant information, making it readily available to residents, thereby nurturing a true sense of commonality and community.
Does that make the point more effectively? Thanks for the feedback.

By: KJ Rodgers

KJ Rodgers — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:52:53 +0000

Wow, this was a read. I think this local trend is growing fast.

By: led panel

led panel — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 10:18:02 +0000

Great comments.

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 02:55:51 +0000

Thanks for the feedback! I really appreciate it.

By: Cap'n

Cap'n — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 02:35:52 +0000

I’m sorry but I think this article took too long to get to the point. I’m reasonably intelligent but I’m not sure exactly what the point was…is it that small towns should be blogging more…?
I guess my style/attention span is just different. Thanks for posting though!

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 20:38:24 +0000

John, I love the image of you keeping up with school info via notes taped to your daughter. That is priceless!
I’m really intrigued with the evolution of these tools and that personal congregation creator you describe.
Exciting times! Thanks for adding to this discussion. CB

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 20:34:47 +0000

David, it sounds like your town is farther down the road in establishing community channels. In some ways, I’m not surprised that our NYC bedroom towns haven’t established a strong community core given the proximity of NYC for everything. However, with more people decentralizing for work and the onslaught of info, as John reminds us, it becomes more critical and also powerful to have a core aggregator of relevance. Long live that self-published bulletin board that can reach us wherever we are! Thanks for contributing! CB

By: C.B. Whittemore

C.B. Whittemore — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 20:28:22 +0000

Sonny, it certainly is fascinating watching interest develop over time and content. And, you’re absolutely right about obtaining official buy-in at some point. Meanwhile, I’m working on getting more guest contibutions. Thanks very much for your encouragement. CB

By: John Simanowitz

John Simanowitz — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:41:44 +0000

You are correct, Christine.
When information was few, and populations were small, even low priority information types were easily found and quickly disseminated. Unfortunately, today’s unprecedented deluge of global information limits what an individual can process. To David’s point, only the most shocking stories can get modest attention these days.
For now, each population will need to determine what new congregation point makes sense and post their information there (Twitter/Facebook/Blog/etc). Of course, it is still up to the individual to subscribe to that content, and no solution will be ideal for everyone.
In the end, this localized condensation of information a stop gap. As the volume of information continues to exponentially compound we will need tools to intelligently decide which news/data has a high probability of relevance for each individual and present that information in whatever format is easiest to digest. Essentially, we will need to create our own personal (more effective) congregation points.
But until that day, I will continue to comb through my RSS Reader and the teacher notes taped to the back of my 2 year old.

By: David Reich

David Reich — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:29:52 +0000

Good work, Christine.
We have similar communications problems in the small city where I live, in suburban Westchester, NY. The local Gannett daily does a mediocre job of covering community news, and there’s really no local radio station. Cable News12 covers the entire county, so local coverage is spotty — only the big news of crime and scandal seems to get coverage.
The city has set up a site, and they also do frequest email updates with community news. A few local individuals are doing what you’ve done — started blogs and Facebook pages.
Self-publishing with all the new tools we have at hand is becoming the new town bulletin board, reaching us directly at home, at work or on the road.

By: Sonny Gill

Sonny Gill — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 13:28:45 +0000

I think it’s awesome what you’re doing for your local community. Creating a homebase where people can find all of their town information vs. the very sporadic postings from the library to school fliers.
The trick for you is to get the town’s buy-in on this new means of communication and information. A great thing you’re doing to help in this is getting other community members on board. Creating evangelists. Other enthusiasts who understand the value and are willing to be a part of it. The more they get into the mix, the more the community will see this and start seeing it as a reliable local source of information.
Kudos to you for doing this – your town will definitely be grateful!