The following story on local news blogs was written by Rob Butcher of the Kirkland Views. Rob's blog is being broadcast on the Seattle Times Online and his news aggregator "Eastside TODAY". Hyperlocal news blogs such as Kirkland Views are increasingly a complement, if not an alternative to traditional news media.Given the the turmoil in the newspaper industry, traditional news organizations are finding it difficult to adequately cover smaller markets such as Kirkland and Redmond. In an effort to improve their news coverage of local communities, The Seattle Times initiated discussions with local in bloggers earlier this year. (The Redmond Blog was one).
The closest thing to a daily paper citizens of the Eastside have is the various editions of the Reporter. These free weekly and semiweekly newspapers are distributed in parts of Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Issaquah and Bothell/Kenmore. These papers are vital to the local communities they serve, but the papers themselves can scarcely be called “local” as the profits they generate do not stay in the local economy. The Reporter papers are published by Sound Publishing which is owned and operated by Black Press, Ltd., a Canadian firm with 115 newspapers in western Canada, Washington State and Hawaii.
The days of print news in its current form are numbered. The traditional news media needs to adapt to the changing environment. The Seattle Times is attempting to do just that with its pilot program to partner with local blogs.
A little history:
In 1976, Bellevue’s Journal-American was founded as a merger of the Bellevue American and the Eastside Journal from Kirkland. In 1996, the Journal-American was renamed the Eastside Journal. In 2003, the paper morphed into the King County Journal. In November of 2006, the King County Journal was purchased along with its nine sister Reporter publications by the Canadian firm firm, Black Press Ltd. The King County Journal published its last issue on January 21, 2007.
-- story by Rob Butcher, Kirkland Views & Eastside TODAY, 5/18/09
Great innovation in online media. Thanks for the heads-up!
ReplyDeleteFYI there is an interesting article about the Seattle Times in the latest issue of Seattle Business Monthly magazine. Things are NOT looking good for the company.