BCU hyper-local preso, Dec 2010

An Introduction to Hyper-Local Media:Emerging Thoughts & Evidence

Presentation to BCU School of Media students Damian Radcliffe, 1st December 2010

Running Order• Why this matters to Ofcom

• Definitions and Characteristics

• Hyper-local in the UK:• TV and Video• Radio and Audio• Print• Web

• Top Five trends

• Top Five barriers

• Top Five Opportunities

• What might happen next?

• Q&A

Why this matters – Political and Social Context

Local TV

4

The rise of online

Regional/local news on TV

Local radio

Free local newspaper

Paid for local newspaper

Newspaper/radio websites

Community websites

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

18

19

15

12

43

34

75

72

75

77

49

55

6

8

8

8

6

5

1

1

1

2

3

5

Do more About the same Do less Don't know

Use of local media now compared to two years ago

Source: Ofcom research

What we already know

1. Localness matters to consumers

2. Consumption habits are changing – slow death of trad. media, rise of the web

3. Trend only likely to increase more people go online.

4. Accessibility, convenience and quality of information are key drivers to the Web.

5. New business models are emerging all of the time.

Why look at hyper-local?

On-going mission to:

• Understand how local media is changing and evolving.

• Understand how citizens and consumers use – and value - local media.

• Understand new business models.

• Understand how hyper-local can underpin local democracy in the UK.

• Role of hyper-local in supporting PSB ecology.

• Promote Media Literacy (use, understand, create).

So, that’s the background.Now let’s talk hyper-local.

Definition

• News or content pertaining to a town, village or small community.

• Geographically smaller than traditional broadcast regions.

• Comes in many different shapes and sizes.

• Professional.• Citizen run/produced.• Hybrid.• Aggregator/Automated.

• Sometimes also referred to as ‘ultra-local’ or community media.

Common Characteristics

1. More localised – both in terms of geography and types of content - than more mainstream media outlets such as commercial radio, TV regional news, BBC regions, or regional and local newspapers.

2. Often seeks to fill gaps - geographical, special interest or demographic – audiences hyper-local producers see as unserved, or under-served, by mainstream media.

3. Diverse sources of funding (if any). Including: advertising, subscriptions, grants from public and private funding bodies and in-kind funding from volunteers.

4. The value and role of community media goes beyond the provision of content, with specific value often seen in the social capital generated by it’s production.

5. May be single issue-based, or too small for commercial operators to merit ROI.

Local TV in the UK

A new vision for local television

“I have long believed that the lack of high quality local TV is one of the biggest gaps in British broadcasting.”

Jeremy Hunt MP, Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport

8 June 2010

RTS, 28 September 2010

• Removal of all local cross-media ownership rules

• Public service broadcasting to be “redefined” with greater emphasis on delivery of local content

• Legislation to clarify which PSB channels should get guaranteed page one position on EPG

Jeremy Hunt has now outlined measures to improve the prospects for local TV:

Shott Report: interim findings

Nicholas Shott identified commercial challenges in delivering local TV on DTT:

• May be more appropriate to plan for local “services” rather than channels

• An existing national channel could act as “host” for local TV “windows” at set times OR offer on-screen prompt to “red button” services

• Limited number of services based on largest urban conurbations

• Additional revenue sources needed e.g. channel sponsorship

• Long term future may lie with IPTV

Where we are now

The existing channels• Wholly commercial channel owned by Guardian Media Group.

Now on digital, cable and satellite. But programme plans significantly scaled back in 2010

• Community model supported by grants from regional and educational bodies. Mix of professional (mainly freelance) labour and volunteers. Emphasis on training

• Privately owned channel aimed mainly at ethnic Asian community in Leicester. Strong links with broadcasters in India to source content

• Small scale service run on semi-amateur basis. Contains local news and sport.

Channel 7, Immingham

• Longest-running local TV channel in the UK. Launched in January 1998.• 140,000 homes can access on TV, via Virgin. (Channel 879). Some content online. • The station is a community interest company (a not-for-profit social enterprise).• Own production centre and studios. Broadcasts 9am to 7pm, seven days a week.• What's On, Events and other local info broadcast in graphic form overnight.• Recently won an O2 Think Big Award for its work with young people.

Recent Partnerships1. Worked with the owners of the Grimsby Telegraph, on election coverage, including videos for the

paper's website and broadcast on Seven as a longer programme.

2. Community magazine publisher CPO Media to deliver a series of Media Mash Up! Workshops, training local students to create their own websites, magazines and TV.

3. In partnership with the BBC, it recorded the BBC General Election programme at Immage Studios. The programme was re-broadcast under licence on Seven Local TV, which is believed to be a first for local TV in the UK.

Hyper-Local Video Online

Mon-TV

Launched in 2008 offering “Local Television for Monmouthshire”,

Features a weekly 15 minute news bulletin as well as a range of other content such as local Sport, Music, Festivals and human interest stories.

Typically gets 1,000 users a day, increasing by 300% at busy times e.g. Festivals. Last December it recorded its millionth visitor.

Run (voluntarily) by two professional filmmakers, and volunteers - some doing 15 hours p/w to help with filming, editing and scheduling.

A lot of the content is generated by students doing a City & Guilds Level 3 Diploma at the station; with coursework being showcased in the “Mon TV Academy” . Many graduates stay on as volunteers after graduating.

All go in Witney

Guardian picked up on an interview Witney TV had done with Jeremy Clarkson, during which the Top Gear presenter revealed that ‘Stig’ had been sacked.

The Independent reported that Witney TV had 10,000 views in the first week, rising to 80,000, and staggering 3.5 million views in the ‘Stig Week’. Started by 4 vols for 11k.

"You may remember a film called Wall Street in which Gordon Gekko said 'Greed is good, greed works'. Well it doesn't... He's history as far as we're concerned."

Town has a population of about 25,000.

Twitney also providing a platform for local video.

Typically funded by own money, but Twitney, offers sponsors the chance to be featured the start and end of films, as well as selling banner ads, and commissioned features.

Community Radio

Licenced Community Radio

Community radio stations are not-for-profit radio services designed to operate on a small scale and to deliver community benefits aka ‘social gain’, to one or more communities.

Initial legislation introduced in 2004. First station launched November 2005.

• Ofcom has to date licensed 228 stations over two rounds of licensing. • 181 are broadcasting, 17 have either not launch or handed their licence back. • Remainder preparing to start broadcasting.

9.2 million adults (just over 11 million people) are able to receive a community radio station broadly aimed at them.

C.15% of the total UK population may be able to receive a community radio service aimed at them on FM or AM.

The Community Radio (Amendment) Order 2010

Came into force on 22 January 2010. Changes to the legislation:

Licence extensions: Ofcom can now extend community radio licences for one period of up to five years. The legislation specifies a period in which an application for an extension may be made. This licence extension 'window' commences 18 months prior to the expiry date of the existing licence, and ends six months before the expiry date.

Removal of the 50% limit on funding from any single source: Previously a licensee could not receive more than 50% of its annual funding from any one source (this referred to a single organisation rather than a type of funding such as advertising or grants).

Removal of the restriction on overlap with small-scale commercial services: Prevoiusly a licence could not be granted to a community radio station where the service would overlap with another local service serving fewer than 50,000 in its measured coverage area.

A growing sector

3 3553

35 30338

89

126154

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Station launches by year

Station launches during the year

Total stations broadcasting at year end

FMAM

COMMUNITY RADIOIN THE UK

Angel R Havant

GTFMAfan FM

Cross Rhythms

HFM

Kemet R

Takeover RThe Eye

R FazaR Dawn

R Ikhlas

Insight R

Awaz FM

Sunny Govan R

Revival R

Angel R IOW

Skyline CR

Express FMUnity 101

BCB

Phoenix FM

Future R

Radio Scilly

shmuFM

The Superstation

Asian Fever

Unity FMNew Style R

Big City

The ‘Bridge

WCR

Radio FailteFeile FM

BFBS Lisburn

Iur

Down FMShine FM

Lionheart R

NE1 FM

Seaside R

Indigo FM

Gloucester FM

Youthcomm R

West Hull CR

R Reverb

Colchester Garrison

Cross Rhythms Plymouth

Forest FM

Greater LondonDesi R– SouthallHayes CR - HayesOn FM – Hammersmith Bang – Stonebridge & HarlesdenNuSound R – NewhamResonance FM – C LondonVoice of Africa - NewhamWestside CR – SouthallRinse FM – Inner LondonReprezent – S LondonBetar Bangla – Tower HamletsGeneration Radio – LambethGreenwich Kasapah – GreenwichStreetlife Radio – Waltham Forest

Asian Star

Phoenix FM

Greater LondonCSR

Tempo

Black Diamond

Leith FM

Edinburgh Garrison

Bristol C FM

R Teesdale

Sheffield LiveBurngreave CR

Branch FM

R Verulam

Diverse FMRadio LaBInspire R

Castledown RSalisbury PlainGarrison

Siren FM

Ipswich CR

Calon FM

Hope FM

Cambridge 105CAM

Aldershot Garrison

Cross Rhythms

Pendle CR

Diversity

BRFM

Saint FM

10Radio

Stroud FM

The Source

R St Austell Bay

Soundart R

BRFM (Blaenau Gwent)

R Tircoed

Somer Valley FM

Ujima FM

Glastonbury FM

Phonic FM

Swindon 105.5

The Bay

Bro R

XLFM

Bute FM

Alive R

Speysound

Drive 105

Aldergrove & Antrim FMHolywood FM

Ballykinler FM

Mearns FM

Celtic Music AM

Pulse CR Brick FM

Dunoon CR

Blast 106Lisburn City R

3TFM

Spice FM

Community Voice

Utopia FM

R Hartlepool

Drystone RCatterick Garrison FM

Bishop FM

Sine FMTMCR

Vixen

Flame CCR

Tudno FM Point FM

Preston FM

Chorley FM

MoorlandsHalton FM

KCC Live

Cheshire FM Canalside

Greater Manchester & N CheshireSalford CRAll FM – South central & East ManchesterWythenshawe FMTameside CRPure R – StockportBolton FMPeace FM – HulmeRossendale RadioNorth Manchester FMGaydio - ManchesterUnity Radio – central Manchester

Crescent

Oldham CR

Gtr Manc. & N Ches. R Lindum

Boundary Sd

Gravity FM

JCom

Redroad FM

Erewash Sd

Amber SdTakeover

Tulip R

TCR FMAmbur R

SACDA RRaaj FM

Switch R

7 Waves R

Kohinoor FMDemon FM

EAVA

R PlusThe Hillz

Hermitage FM

Inspiration FM

Penistone

R Cardiff

Corby R

Felixstowe

Blyth Valley

Zack fm RWS fm

Wayland R

Leisure FM

BigglesFM

Huntingdon CR

IntoBeats

AHBSSunlight

Academy

Academy

Rye

R Awaaz

Meridian

Uckfield FM

Seahaven

BGWS

Marlow FM

Voice

The Park

1 Ummah

OX4

Vibe

Suzy

Community Radioin the UK - types of community served

Autumn 2010

Type of community served

Number of licences awarded

Percentage of licences awarded

Number on air (November 2010)

General audience – town/rural

97 43% 75

General audience – urban

38 17% 31

Minority ethnic group

31 14% 27

Young people 25 11% 17

Religious focus 15 7% 12

Military 9 4% 9

Other

Older people 4 2% 3

Arts 3 1% 3

Disability 1 >1% 1

Health promotion 1 >1% 1

LBGT 1 >1% 1

Independent/Urban music

2 >1% 0

Scottish music 1 >1% 1

Total 228 181

Other Community Radio & Audio

Hackney Podcast

• The Hackney Podcast won Sony Radio Gold 2010 for the best internet radio programme. • Recently won the Gold award for General programming in the New York Festivals International Radio Awards.

Launched 2008; available to download for free each month from their website.

The winning podcast looked at water and how it fits into the lives of people in Hackney. Featured author and psycho-geographer Iain Sinclair and architectural historian Simon Inglis, and music from electro-acoustic composers incl. Francisco Lopez and Stefano Tedesco.

“The Hackney Podcast is just the type of targeted and locally orientated content that sets podcasting apart from conventional radio broadcasting. Using first rate contributors the podcast examined how water fits into the lives of people in Hackney. The production quality is outstanding giving the whole

listen a water like lyricism that carries the listen through to it's conclusion.”Sony Radio Judges, 2010

Prison Radio Association

Based in HMP Brixton, Electric Radio Brixton supports rehabilitation by engaging prisoners in programming that addresses a range of issues related to offending behaviour.

Broadcasts cover issues like education, employment and finance; mental and physical health; drug misuse; maintaining family relationships – all factors key to reducing re-offending. Majority of content is inspired, developed and produced, under guidance, by prisoners and broadcast across the jail to prisoners in their cells. Advertises educational opportunities and key messages on behalf of the prison or agencies e.g. Samaritans and Alcoholics Anonymous.

Prisoners completing radio training courses gain recognised qualifications and develop a range of skills, including measurable improvements in literacy, numeracy and ICT. They also develop transferable life skills, essential to successful reintegration into mainstream society.

“This no holds barred approach captures the harsh realities of life inside. The story delivered impact through impressive production techniques and credible story telling.”

Sony Radio Judges

Hyper-Local Print

Leys News

“Leys News …[is] … the most important source of information for local residents: achieving 36% of top scores and beating the Oxford Mail into second place.”

• Established in 1998. Published every two months. • Reaches almost 5,000 homes and up to 14,000 people.• Community newspaper and as such is non-profit-making. • Delivered to every door on Blackbird / Greater Leys estate SE Oxford.

• Supported by a website http://www.leysnews.co.uk/ and• Leys Listings (launched Jan 08): a calendar of events, a Useful Numbers section (NHS

Direct, out-of-hours emergency contacts for the local housing associations, the Thames Valley Police non-emergency number, etc) and a free classified ads section for residents.

• Paid for by one or two small paid-for adverts. • Copies are pinned up in community buildings, takeaways, phone boxes and bus shelters.

• Paid for publication (eleven times a year). Established in 1979.• Covers the Earlsdon, Chapelfields, Hearsall and Spon End districts of Coventry.• Provides information, comment and entertainment for residents of these areas.

• Produced entirely by a core team of 10-12 volunteers.• But anyone is welcome to contribute. • It is independently financed by sales and advertising • Not affiliated to political, religious or commercial orgs.

• Sold through local outlets e.g. newsagents, churches, pubs and local shops. Sell without taking a commission.

• Website has extensive links for local businesses and a detailed diary of activities organised by local groups.

http://www.echonews.org.uk/

Hackney Citizen

• 10,000 copies distributed face-to-face in the first week of every month at markets, train stations, and events and also in cafes, shop, businesses and libraries.

• Estimated readership: 30,000. Plus online audience: http://www.hackneycitizen.co.uk/

• Written by the community incl. freelancers from NCTJ, Telegraph and the Guardian.• No office, no staff, no overheads. • No previous experience. (Keith Magnum who runs it used to work for the Green Party.)

• Sell ads, ABC1 skew. • Won’t take ads from chains competing with local business e.g. Morrisons.

• Uses free Guardian API to pull in relevant content produced elsewhere e.g. a visit from Jude Law to the Petchey Academy in Dalston.

Spot the Difference

Online, Commercial

SE1 / Bankside Press

London SE1 Community Website - local news service and discussion forum for London's South Bank, Bankside, Bermondsey and Waterloo areas. http://www.London-SE1.co.uk

Supported byin SE1 monthly printed what's on guide.

SE1 Direct weekly email newsletter7,200+ subscribers.

SE16.com is our online events guide for Rotherhithe and Bermondsey.

All produced by Bankside Press, a small family-run web and print publishing business in SE1.

Neighbour Net

• Started in 2000 with ChiswickW4.com• Now runs 9 sites in West London. Mix of news and information.• 5 others with listing information.

• Membership model.• Over 30,0000 signed up.• Provides some demographic data

• Postcode• Real name• DOB

• Used when selling ads.

• Some shared – and credited content with the local press.

• Looking at further expansion.http://www.neighbournet.com

Online, Forums

Sheffield Forum

• 4.5 million posts, 273,638 topics and 111,393 registered users (Oct 10).

• Population of Sheffield = 547,000, England’s third largest metropolitan authority

Other Forums

Examples include:

http://www.urban75.com/

Brixton (and plenty of non-Brixton)

related content from gig reviews to

photographs and local forums. Traffic “in excess of quarter of a million page impressions

per day” despite being non-commercial and free of advertising. Launched in 1995.

• Launched July 2007. Using white label social networking tools e.g. Ning, Flickr. • Sign up required. 2,000 members. Discussion and interaction with both a civic and social

purpose within the neighbourhood of Harringay in the Borough of Haringey.

www.harringayonline.com

Online, Campaigning

Big Society Launch, No 10, 18 May 2010

whetherman 18 May 2010, 4:00PMWorrying to see Toby Young grinning away there in the background (apologies if it isn't him). Taking the earliest possible opportunity to get in his bid to take money, staff and resources out of the existing education system so that he can use them to get a better education for his own kids

Abandoned cars and weekly arsonBingfield Park, Rufford Street 2002In front of Will Perrin’s house Pics – Mark Bailey

Stolen moped Grand Prixs c2002Bingfield Park Kings CrossMost Saturdays when Arsenal at homeIn front of Will Perrin’s house Pics – Mark Bailey

The ‘Crackavan’Rufford Street c2002In front of Will Perrin’s house Pics – Mark Bailey

Caledonian Ward Safer Neighbourhood Panel

North King Cross Environmental Taskforce

West Area Committee

West Area Planning Committee

CYP Management committee

Kings Cross Development Forum

Gifford, Rufford and Randells Residents Association

Team Cally

Sparkplug Management Committee

Planning Applications (dozens)

....but found huge information burden mostly from council and local public services

Uses the web to streamline all this

Got stuck in to traditional local action over several years........

‘Strategic plans’ - many

Cemex: $multi-billion Mexican multi-national concrete company. Very noisy plant in KX. Resident led campaign uses videos to evidence noise. YouTube links sent to UK CEO, Council etc. Cemex capitulate – correct problems and restructure plant.

Now over 900 articles from Four volunteer writers – aged 40-65Campaigns, information, wildlife, events etcPart of wider regeneration – crime down, streets cleaner, public services more responsive

Hyper-Local Storytelling

Other Forums

Stories about life in Spitalfields, East London. Focus on human interest stories and history.

Email sign up for daily updates. Ambition to author 10,000 posts.

“At the rate of one a day, this will take approximately twenty-seven years and four months. Who knows what kind of life we shall be living in 2037 when I write my ten thousandth post?”

Readers from Qatar, Seattle and all over the world, not just E1! Sample user comments:

“Your blog has become a daily joy I look forward to savouring. It’s a bit like a grown-up (and sometimes not-so grown-up) advent calendar. I open it with the same anticipation…”

“I love you gentle author. I read Spitalfields Life when my heart is worn. It makes me think of you and how remarkable the beauty. 2037 indeed. Hope I’m here.”

http://spitalfieldslife.com/

Top Five Hyper-Local Trends

1. Open Data and Transparency

Government transparency agenda includes a commitment to make public all Council Expenditure over £500, salaries of Public Servants earning £150,000+ and organograms.

CLG are encouraging financially literate citizens to act as ‘Armchair Auditors’ scrutinising Council expenditure in a similar manner to the way that the Guardian askedpeople to help them review MP’s expenses.

Adrian Short’s Website for the Royal Borough Of Windsor &

Maidenhead

2. Civic Engagement

Means for two way engagement from the public with elected officials, Councils et al.Sites belonging to officials, or a means for them to contribute on other Forums.

“Formby First” started May 2007.

Sean Brady is a Parish Councillor.

Formby, small seaside townin Merseyside.

Or you might find other officials using sites and forums set up by others.

3. Hyper-Local Advertising

Location Based Advertising• Predicted value $1.8bn by 2015, up from est. $43m in 2010 (ABI Research Sept 10)• Uses a mix of GPS, Wi-Fi, and /or Cell-ID depending on the product or service, the

region, the consumers, and the location accuracy required.

• Targets users with relevant local information, and ads for local businesses. • Google, says such ads already get 8% more clickthroughs than basic mobile ads.

Already live in the UK O2 More customers receive messages pushed from Starbucks and L'Oreal, regardless of their handset or contract, but only when they pass through locations pertinent to those companies. Service is opt in. Launched 15/10/10. One message a day max.

AgenciesHyper-local media buying agency Oxbury Media, has built up an ad network of 10,000 sub local newspaper publications and sites representing a 10m+ audience.

4. Traditional Media goes hyper… local

• Launched mid launched mid September 2010. Pan-Scottish roll out by end 2011.

• Six pilot sites: www.stv.tv/airdrie, www.stv.tv/bellshill, www.stv.tv/coatbridge, www.stv.tv/cumbernauld, www.stv.tv/motherwell, and www.stv.tv/wishaw.(Branded according to area, e.g. STV Motherwell or STV Cumbernauld)

• Content: news, events listings, ratings and reviews, weather, traffic, business directory. Plus information from local public bodies, sports organisations, theatre groups, schools, church groups, and other engaged community members.

• Editorial team working with “content partners and community contributors” to encourage UGC (as well as producing their own material).

• Links to media courses, training for contributors in web publishing and writing.

• Digital advertising opportunities e.g. banner ads, classified listings. • Plusnet launch sponsor.

Newspapers going hyper-local

Smaller titles have always existed alongside bigger ones. Examples of new initiatives include:

Associated Northcliffe Digital• 23 Localpeople projects launched in 2009, mostly in the South West. • Associated says Localpeople has grown on average 22% p/m. Now has 100 websites.• Aims to expand to 200 by Summer 2011.

Guardian LocalDesigned to bring “a small-scale community approach to local newsgathering” in Edinburgh, Leeds and Cardiff . Each location has a dedicated beatblogger working in communities, finding stories and using mySociety tools, e.g. TheyWorkForYou.com and FixMyStreet.com.

Trinity MirrorTeesside Gazette, has 10 online hyperlocal blogs, which each focus on a single postcode and are run by unpaid volunteers.

Sites like that for the TM owned Uxbridge Gazette also contains links to hyper-local platforms.

Newspaper sites typically have sites within a site e.g. this is Croydon Today

Xxxx

5. The changing face of Journalism

"A lot of bloggers seem to be socially inadequate, pimpled, single, slightly seedy, bald, cauliflower-nosed young men sitting in their mother's basements and ranting.”

"But the so-called citizen journalism is the spewings and rantings of very drunk people late at night.… It is fantastic at times but it is not going to replace journalism."

Andrew Marr, at the Cheltenham Literary Festival, October 2010

Does hyper-local do journalism?

Jon Bounds, Birmingham: It’s Not Shit (“Mildly sarcastic since 2002″)“I’m not a journalist, nor have aspirations to be one gives the site freedom… it doesn’t solicit adverts (the few on the site are unpaid favours to friends) gives it a strength.”

But many sites have strong journalistic roots:

The Lichfield Blog was launched in January 2009, by Ross Hawkes, senior lecturer in journalism at Staffs Uni. Started his journalistic career at the now defunct Lichfield Post.

Saddleworthnews.com – edited by Richard Jones, a journalist who is currently a stay-at-home dad and who voluntarily updates his site.

Andrew Gilligan, writes a weekly column for a hyper-local site in the area he lives in. “Gilligan's Greenwich" - http://www.greenwich.co.uk/andrew-gilligan/

Many Overlaps

I would argue that many hyper-local sites shares many of the characteristics and content we expect from journalists; from newspapers, from Regional TV news, from local radio…

• Holding authority to account• Investigations• Council Reporting• Local campaigns• Coverage of events; from Festivals to General Elections• Local News• Local Sport• What’s On and Listings• Classifieds• Reporting on Emergencies

Some quick examples…

Holding public bodies to account

The £25,000 website which attracts just 10 visitors a day

• Saddleworth News hyper-local site FOI to Oldham Council about the “Oldham Says” website, a site aimed at residents to support a local strategic partnership for the area, which brings together the Council, Greater Manchester Police, the local NHS, the education sector and others, to tackle various problems.

• FOI showed “Oldham Says” received just 2,548 unique visits in the six months to the end of September 2010.

“With a total of £25,544 having been spent on setting up the site, that’s roughly equivalent to an incredible £10 for each and every click.

The site’s readership has been particularly low in the last two months, with just 268 people logging on in August and 296 doing so in September.”

Council Reporting

Ventnor Blog, Isle of Wight Pits n Pots, Stoke

News

Hertsweb.tv. recorded and streamed General Election hustings live, using a vision mixer bought on eBay for £50. Lichfield Blog – 12,000 uniques a month, 10 stories a day. News only.In contrast thisislichfield.co.uk only publishes stories on a Thurs when also out in print. Ventnor blog solicited, and published, a range of responses from IoW related bodies: IW Council Reaction To Government Spending Review / Hampshire Police Authority: Response To Comprehensive Spending Review BCU MA Online Journalism students have set up a hyperlocal blog for the 50,000 public sector workers in the region, primarily to report those budget cuts and how they are affecting people. http://birminghambudgetcuts.blogspot.com/

Issues and Challenges

Top 5 Challenges

1. Discoverability

2. Funding and Making it Pay (CSR cuts, advertising – small revenues or inappropriate ads from Ad Sense, ‘big media’ paying for stories etc.)

3. Resources (often run by one person, or small group)- especially an issue in the event of a legal challenge (lack of legal and financial resources, Union support etc.)

4. Isolation and opportunities to learn from others

5. Audience perceptions of quality - Our LMR consumer research suggested that some consumers may be turned-off by community media if they perceive it to be low in quality compared to other forms of local media.

- But other research, and anecdotal evidence suggests strong stickability once services are found.

Top 5 Opportunities

1. More partnerships between big traditional media and hyper-local producers.

– Already seen 4iP and Talk About Local. – New BBC Local Fund announced. Details TBC.

– The Birmingham Mail Communities project : 34 hyper-local sections on the Birmingham Mail website, featuring content from local blogs including Digbeth is Good, The Lichfield Blog and Bournville Village.

– Nick Booth’s new BBC blog on hyper-local websites: “Besides taking an interest in the bloggers, what they write and why they do it, I’ll also be talking to a number of BBC newsrooms and production teams and introducing people.”

2. Cost of creation continuing to decline (e.g. iPhone, Flip, Wordpress, hosting etc.).

3. Sector starting to develop cross links.

4. Big Society – more volunteers.

5. Tie ins with academic bodies, which can encourage diversity and broaden talent pool

- Bournemouth University launched it’s own hyper-local site: http://www.standfirstonline.co.uk/

- 13 journalism schools in the US taking part in PatchU initiative, with Patch.

What might happen next?

1. Overseas players join the UK market

Most likely, Patch. Which AOL invested $50m in last year.

“One journalist in each town travels to school board meetings and coffee shops with a laptop and camera. Patch also solicits content from readers, pulls in articles from other sites and augments it all with event listings, volunteer opportunities, business directories and lists of local information like recycling laws. “

Dramatic growth and investment plans

• April 2010 = 46 sites in 5 states.• 400 hyper-local sites over the next six months, bringing its total to 500.• Hiring 500 more reporters in 20 states.• “Biggest new hirer of full-time journalists in the U.S.” (Actually, most are part-time.)

• Expansion plans uses a 59-variable algorithm which includes factors like the average household income, how often citizens vote, and high school ranking.

• Claims it costs 1/25 of the cost of a daily newspaper in the same town.

2. Location Based Services take off

Information and entertainment services, accessed through mobile networks which harness the ability to identify the geographical position of the device/user.

Characteristics• Share your location – and status - with friends. • Discover businesses and services near you.• Rate aforementioned businesses and services.• See if your friends are nearby, or invite them to join you. • Rewards / incentives to share e.g. badges, discounts etc.

Best known examples: Foursquare and Facebook Places. Others, often US only atm: Gowalla, SCVNGR, Whrrl, Loopt and Brightkite

Still small fry…

Why?

1. It’s pretty new, so low awareness. 7% awareness amongst adults in US, April 2010.

2. Low understanding of benefits.

3. Low numbers vs. critical mass.“None of my friends are on it. so what’s the point?”Not enough businesses /deals to merit signing up.

4. Privacy“The danger is publicly telling people where you are. This is because it leaves one place you're definitely not... home.” http://pleaserobme.com/

5. Big brands late to the party But large user base may mean leapfrogging more ‘established’ services.

But big potential for growth

Individuals1. Desire to share where we are, what we are doing and what we are thinking.2. On-going rise of the smartphone.3. Access to free stuff, or discounts. 4. Herd mentality (follow your friends).5. Location based activity becomes the norm.

Businesses• Develop relationship with customers – consumer insight and can drive loyalty

e.g. Check-in Specials: unlocked when a user checks in to your venue a certain number of times. ("Foursquare says you've been here 10 times? That's a free drink for you!")

• If your competitors are there, then you will have to follow suit.

• Once integration is possible, can squirt out messages on all platforms / programmes.

“Foursquare is a mobile application that makes cities easier to use and more interesting to explore. It is a friend- finder, a social city guide and a game that challenges users to experience new things, and rewards them for doing so. Foursquare lets users "check in" to a place when they're there, tell friends where they are and track the history of where they've been and who they've been there with.”

• Launched at South by Southwest Interactive in Austin, Texas in March 2009.• c3 million users worldwide (August 2010).• 15,000 venues experimenting with Special Offers on foursquare.

Insert Fsq in Space slide

Facebook Places

Launched August 2010. Just 9 months after development started.

Focused on getting the three core elements right :1) finding friends, 2) checking-in, 3) building stories about places

Will add rewards or deals with locations/companies in the future.

3. New partnerships and tie ins

• Starbucks Digital Network launched in the US in October 2010.

• Offers free (was paid) in-store Wi-Fi and exclusive content for mobile devices.

• c.30m logins to its Wi-Fi p/m. Mostly accessed by smartphones and iPads.

• The network's content includes news, entertainment, business, and health channels, as well as local neighbourhood information.

• Content providers for the network include Bookish Reading Club, Foursquare, GOOD, LinkedIn, New Word City, and The Weather Channel.

• You can also access special content from the New York Times, iTunes, and WSJ.com, the latter of which normally sits behind a paywall.

4. More reverse publishing

• Online content converted into print products.

• Attractive to audience not online, or who don’t use the web beyond email or Skype. • Sweeble, allows community websites to be easily converted into a print product.

See also Zinepal, Printcasting, iNews and FeedJournal.

• US blogger Michael Josefowicz talks about a new model: "Ground > Cloud > Print“ He calls this; “the Printernet”.

HU17.net, which covers Beverley, has started a weekly print version. It’s a small print run – about 100 copies. Paul Smith, the publisher, told The Guardian:

“Local shops have been very supportive with many signing up to advertising package that is realistic and very affordable, something that was certainly needed in the area.”

5. Everything is SocialFor some of us, some of the time, much of what we do is already social…

• Clickthroughs on news stories or items friends post to their Facebook wall.

• Following trends via a twitter #tag.

• Social bookmarking like Del.icious.

• Google Alerts.

• Netvibes.

75% of news consumed online is through shared news from social networking sites or e-mail. Social news is finding us.

Mashable, Summer 2010

Relationships with old media are changingWe no longer trust journalists like we did

“What ought to worry all journalists is the massive slide in trust, relative to other organisations or groups, since this question was first asked five years ago…

Of the 23 groups covered in the current survey, journalists have performed worse than every other one.

That applies to each of the seven different kindsof journalists we identified except one – the red-top reporters, whose reputation was so low that it could hardly sink any further.

Just about the only crumb of comfort to be derived from the figures is the fact that red-top journalists no longer prop up the table but have the dubious consolation of being overtaken (or undertaken) by estate agents.”

Steven Barnett, British Journalism Review, Vol 19, No 2, 2008

We increasingly want different things

The days when “news and information were tightly controlled by a few editors, who deigned to tell us what we could and should know,” are over.

No longer would people accept “a godlike figure from above” presenting the news as “gospel.” Today’s consumers “want news on demand, continuously updated. They want a point of view about not just what happened but why it happened. . . .

And finally, they want to be able to use the information in a larger community—to talk about, to debate, to question, and even to meet people who think about the world in similar or different ways.”

Rupert Murdoch, 2005

“Small is the new big”

“Don’t dictate to me. Or decide for me.

This is what you’re getting. At Six O'clock. On Channel 3.

News from Bedford when you live in a sleepy town just outside Beccles.

Big is bust; big is broken.

Small is the new big.

And what the web embraces, encourages and empowers is the individual…”

Rick Waghorn, Norfolk blogger and journo

Thanks for listening.Any questions?

Comments and feedback welcome: [email protected]

@mrdamian76