Can local online news work? (apart from Seattle…)

Beckett, Charlie (2008) Can local online news work? (apart from Seattle…). POLIS: journalism and society at the LSE (25 Sep 2008). Website.

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Abstract

My Ballard is a very smart and popular local website in Seattle serving about 35,000. Its creators are confident they can make advertising income. Have a read about why they think it worked but I think the trick was to see themselves as facilitators rather than local journalists: “the appetite for neighborhood news has been tremendous. Newspapers are covering less, and TV stations only storm into a neighborhood when there’s breaking news or a quirky story with regional interest. We receive so many email tips, comments and forum posts, we’re able to provide a steady stream of original stories. We’re also able to beat the traditional media on larger Ballard stories, thanks to our active readers. In effect, we don’t “cover” the neighborhood, we “moderate” it. Users are our eyes and ears, and we provide a layer of journalism over the top, confirming stories before we post them.”

Item Type:	Online resource (Website)
Official URL:	http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/polis/
Additional Information:	© 2008 The Author(s)
Divisions:	Media and Communications
Subjects:	P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN1990 Broadcasting
Date Deposited:	22 May 2017 13:57
Last Modified:	09 May 2025 09:21
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/78208

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