I had fun last year covering DeLon's record-breaking fundraiser for the Children's Miracle Network. But as Madison-centric as the Madville Times is, I felt a different Internet tool could provide even better coverage of community events like this. (Besides, I didn't want to provoke further lactose intolerance from Todd for plugging up his RSS feed. ;-) )
I particularly wanted to open the door to more community participation in recording the event and telling the story of the kids Dairy Queen and Children's Miracle Network help. Having comments open on the blog is one thing: making it possible for all my neighbors to participate as equal contributors is something else.
That idea of community participation online was driven home to me at the blog conference I attended in June. In almost every presentation, workshop, and conversation I participated in, my fellow online journalists and I kept returning to the idea that citizens are no longer mere consumers of media. The Internet isn't just a new way for the talking heads to tell you (me, us) what to think (and buy). The Internet restores to all citizens the power (and responsibility?) to be participants, producers of the media.
Thus, RealMadison.org, an effort to create on online civic space for Madison and all of Lake County (and anyone else who might be interested in our patch of prairie). What should it look and sound like? Well, that's largely up to you, neighbors. But initially, we can take our cues from some successful community journalism projects:
- Locally Grown Northfield (Minnesota)
- The Forum (Deerfield, New Hampshire)
- Village Soup (Knox County, Maine)
- MyTopiaCafe.com (Volusia/Flagler, Florida)
- West Seattle Blog (Washington)
We'll start small: RealMadison.org has a page set up specifically for Miracle Treat Day 2008. Log in and you can post your comments and even upload photos of your friends and your favorite Blizzards right there. But you can also create your own blogs and discussion forums* about the Madison Dairy Queen and Miracle Treat Day 2008.
And from there, well, that's up to you. Post scores and photos from the football games and cross-country meets. Report on what you heard at the city commission or school board meeting. Show us how tall your corn is or how many walleye you caught. Tell us about the visit from your Aunt Rosie from the Hills. If it happens in Madison, in Lake County, it matters. Talk about it on RealMadison.org.
Michelle Ferrier, manager of MyTopiaCafe.com, said at the June conference that we are at "the nexus of folklore and the future." Sounds fancy, but here's what she means: Folklore is simply our collective knowledge, the stuff we know about each other and our community thanks to the stories we tell each other. What we know and who we are is not something someone gives (or sells) us. Our stories, our knowledge, our identities—we make them ourselves. And the Internet helps us do that, with sites like RealMadison.org. Enjoy!
*Indeed, the Latin plural of forum is fora. But I used that Latin plural in a research proposal once and got shot down by the professor reviewing the paper. Go figure!
Love the new header on Realmadison.
ReplyDeleteCheck out the last paragraph on the MDL website about the new Madison PD officers. Almost sounds like a personals ad!
CAH:
ReplyDeleteMost collaborative news sites fail because they unable to tell a cohesive story. People posting random pictures and comments is interesting, but cannot replace good journalism. People tire too quickly when reading material that has not been properly written.
The successful collaborative sites accept all of this content (comments/pics/etc.) and then have an editor go back over it and massage it into a good story. Then readers have access first to the massaged material and can then click a button at the bottom of the page to get to the "raw feed".
If you want the new site to be a success I highly recommend that you post a list of topics (and ask for community recommendations) you want submissions for and find some dedicated individuals to help feed you some content. Then, put together cohesive stories yourself from that material.
This fellow seems informed. Must say I love the idea and a format that could be a resource for city and county feedback. Simple though. I was a little confused on the site where to go. Cohesive makes sense. At least some recommended topics. But I find people's comments on your site very readable and like their own words. JH
ReplyDeletePS: Once mentioned identifiable comments mean more than anonymous, although they have their place. Anonymous are often thoughtful but too easily over the top. Accountability encourages proofreading and further consideration before posting. Regardless, at times I suspect I know some of you. JohnSD, JH, JGH, John Hess, Greedy Landlord.
ReplyDeleteKeep that feedback coming, folks! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteEditing, promoting content to the front page, suggesting topics -- good ideas, Tony, and they'll be coming. Today I just want to see fi the thing works when people get on.
JH: good point about not being clear where to go. Over the next month I'll be working on FAQs, some simple tutorials on how to use the features (once I figure them all out myself!), and ever cleaner navigation.
I was thinking Cory, that the way you post recent comments really draws people in (me anyway). I hoped to see the museum do something similar on their site, with a prompt for people to share their Madison recollections, just letting them roll in for others to see, possibly leading to newsletter ideas and so on. Could you give such a prompt on issues of interest, such as: What new businesses do we need the most?, What local government program is really working well?, What do you most appreciate about our community that keeps you here?. And then (maybe this is how you are planning it since I saw the sign on) have people submit their comment but only if their work is signed by name or identifiable by user name. Anonymous submissions have to go through you or possibly not at all. This fellow Tony is probably right that simple raw feed as he puts it may not work, but at the same time it may be too much to expect CAH to do extensive editing. Shouldn't the site to some extent work on its own? I just have to tell you, I really enjoy hearing about how other people in the community feel and think about things, especially when it's in a respectful tone, and this could really be a way for people to share that. Keep it simple. JH
ReplyDelete