The New York Times Expected To Launch Local Blog Network On Monday (Confirmed)

The New York Times Expected To Launch Local Blog Network On Monday (Confirmed)

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Short Post Test

Just a short post to see what the layout looks like with the calendar at the bottom. Could be a problem since I'm only displaying one entry at a time. Which is worse: a big gap at the bottom in the story column or a big gap on the right?

I'm Thinking Blog

Well this is going well. The Google Maps API is very well documented and there is a strong developer community, too. But, as I think about the presentation and use of this tool, it's not the map functionality that is most important. The blog seems to be the thing that will keep the interest up. I like the way the map features provide quick geographic reference to whatever neighborhood news is published, though. And, it's so easy to get sucked into touring the neighborhood through the street view that it must have some marketing value. That said, to keep an audience interested enough to come back, there always needs to be fresh content, and that's where the blog comes in handy.

I could see the blog working like the newsletter except that it isn't published as an edition periodically. Stories would be published as they are completed. That might be a problem, actually. There may be some folks who know when to expect their accumulated news. I personally don't wait on pins and needles for my next issue of Huffman Highlights, but I do read the entire thing immediately whenever it arrives. Would I miss it if it were gone? Maybe. Probably. Would I look for neighborhood news elsewhere? I don't know.

I think as print publications fall by the wayside, people will start to use online tools to receive their news. Though, there is some value in periodic publication of news. Frankly, it's just more organized. Is there a way to receive accumulated news periodically in an online fashion? Certainly. Email newsletters would serve this purpose, but the production is basically the same as a printed newsletter and they still require readers to check their email regularly. Regular email checking seems to be something people have become used to, though. So, maybe we're not far from reading our news online through content aggregators. But, the ease of producing blog posts is hard to ignore especially when you're talking about volunteer editors.

At any rate, I think the benefits of using the blog format outweigh the negatives. There are already a lot of ways that individuals can choose to receive their online content. Once a standard evolves as it has for email, the direction we need to take should become clearer. Until then, we should keep an eye on trends and evaluate them on their merits. I think the key is to not be too cutting edge, but to remain informed on technologies enough to be able to implement them when we think the time is right. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Write me some comments.