2) I think the meme that has developed regarding the "Ground Zero Mosque" is ridiculous and embarrassing and indicative of just how much Fox News sets the agenda for American media. As pointed out by Nate Silver at FiveThirtyEight (via CJR):
Essentially, public opinion on this issue is divided into thirds. About a third of the country thinks that not only do the developers have a right to build the mosque, but that it’s a perfectly appropriate thing to do. Another third think that while the development is in poor taste, the developers nevertheless have a right to build it. And the final third think that not only is the development inappropriate, but the developers have no right to build it — perhaps they think that the government should intervene to stop it in some fashion.
Why then have so many media outlets reported that President Obama's views on the subject are "out of touch with the majority of Americans"? Why is this even still a story? Sadly, it's because conservative pundits, online and on air, drive today's 24-hour news cycle.
3) I've read a lot about TBD.com in journalism circles since it's launch over a week ago, but since I don't live in (or care about) Washington, DC, the site itself hasn't been particularly interesting to me. I wish them well, of course, but I'm not convinced TBD's success or failure will tell us anything we couldn't already have suspected. Is it possible to build a news organization by linking blogs and competition sites? Probably, if you do it right. Would TBD failing change my answer? Probably not.
2 comments:
I work for Patch, and I think you'll see that we're not losing any authenticity -- at least as long as the editor is committed and passionate about community journalism. I live and work in the town I cover, and I set the editorial agenda for my site myself. There are no company-wide directives for what we have to cover, or how we cover them.
Can't get any more authentic than that :)
Like I said, how good the site is depends on how much the editor puts into it. But that can also be said about traditional reporters at traditional media outlets.
Thanks for reading Erica. If I didn't convey it in the original post, I am actually glad that Patch has chosen to expand into my state. The competition will be a good thing for readers (better coverage) and writers (more markets) alike.
Maybe it's unfair of me, but given the choice between two local products, one by an independent producer and the other by a local subsidiary of a larger corporate entity, I always choose the former.
Why? It's hard to quantify, but the best word I was able to come up with is "authenticity," not just of the people and the product, but of the entire experience.
Example: Every Patch site I've seen has essentially the same layout, right down to the color scheme. Obviously, this has nothing to do with the quality of the site's content, but I feel it's indicative of the difference between the home-grown hyperlocal aesthetic and Patch's.
Every Starbucks looks essentially the same on the inside too.
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