Boston.com’s hyperlocal experiment

Chuck Tanowitz reports that the Boston Globe’s Boston.com affiliate is about to unveil a series of hyperlocal Web sites, including one for Newton.

The Globe doesn’t intend to provide any original content. Rather, each hyperlocal site will serve as a guide to existing material. In the case of Newton, that means, among other things, stories from GateHouse Media’s Newton Tab.

This strikes me as hyperlocal journalism on the ultracheap. I understand the purpose: to come up with a more affordable advertising platform for local businesses. And I understand that the Globe is hurting financially; Adam Reilly of the Boston Phoenix detailed the latest round of cuts on Thursday.

But think of the value that Boston.com could add by hiring a mobile journalist to cover three or four towns, uploading blog posts, photos and videos throughout the day.

Tanowitz notes that there may be an intellectual-property issue that needs to be resolved, too. Indeed. Yes, the Globe could drive traffic to the Tab by publishing a headline, a summary and a link. But what if that’s all some readers are looking for, so they never follow the link? GateHouse publishes its content online under a Creative Commons license that allows for noncommercial re-use. But that certainly wouldn’t cover the Globe.

Financially challenged news organizations are exploring new ways to survive. My own sense is the ones that will pay off are those that aren’t solely about making money, but that provide a real service for readers as well. At least based on Tanowitz’s account, this sounds rather more cynical than that. But we’ll see. (Via Universal Hub.)

Student videoblogging at Northeastern

I just finished watching videos made by my students in Reinventing the News. All of them have good points; some are quite strong from beginning to end.

A few technical notes:

  • The videos were shot with low-end digital cameras, several of which created file compatibility problems. Two students who used Flip cameras had to edit their work on their Windows laptops using Windows Movie Maker, as iMovie ’08 for Macintosh wouldn’t accept their clips. I’m sure there’s a converter, but I’d have to track it down.
  • Another student tried two different cameras — a Sony and a Casio, if I’m not mistaken — and couldn’t pull either into iMovie. She ended up having to skip the assignment.
  • I have mixed feelings about iMovie ’08 (also known, weirdly enough, as iMovie 7). Although it’s easy to use in some respects, and I figured out how to do B-roll despite a lack of documentation, it’s not as precise as iMovie 6. One student used iMovie 6 on her own Mac laptop. She and those using Windows Movie Maker seemed to have an easier time.

Video for the Web is a skill well worth teaching journalism students today. I’m glad we tried it, and I’ve got some ideas for how to do a better job of teaching it the next time.

Defending Sarah Palin (really!)

Can you name all the countries in North America? I’m the sort of geek who always chooses geography questions in Trivial Pursuit, but I’m not sure I could do it off the top of my head. Let’s see:

  • Canada
  • United States
  • Mexico
  • El Salvador
  • Honduras
  • Belize
  • Nicaragua
  • Costa Rica
  • Panama

How did I do? (Whoops — I just looked at a map, and I missed Guatemala.)

Since Carl Cameron reported on Sarah Palin’s ignorance, the media have been having a field day with this. Trouble is, we don’t know whether she committed the equivalent of missing Guatemala or if she told Steve Schmidt that Antarctica is the capital of Siberia.

I’m more interested to know who’s leaking this stuff, and why.

Beating the press

I’ll be on “Beat the Press” tonight (WGBH-TV, Channel 2, 7 p.m.) talking about — among other things — President-elect Obama’s first post-election news conference, which will take place today at 2:30 p.m.

This will be my last “BTP” update. Given that I’ve been erratic about posting these, they’re not of much value. I’m on most of the time. And even when I’m not, I don’t want to imply that you shouldn’t watch.

Tanked and in the tank

Even though I’m 52, I’m just a bit too young to have experienced the (ahem) golden era of newspapering, when reporters drank like fish and didn’t just cover politicians but worked for them in their spare time.

Good thing we’ve got the Brits to keep that tradition alive. (Obligatory forelock-tugging: I’m sure no one at the Guardian would ever engage in such disgraceful behavior!) Thanks, Brian, even though you’re taking this too seriously. If this clown was doing anything other than costing Obama votes, I’d be surprised.

Sarah Palin’s real enemies

If nothing else, I hope Sarah Palin’s partisans come to realize that her supposed enemies in the media were a bunch of wimps compared to her supposed friends in the McCain campaign.

“Wasilla hillbillies looting Neiman Marcus from coast to coast” … going after William Ayers before the campaign had made a final decision on whether to do so (how’d that work out?) … didn’t know Africa was a continent … “so nasty and angry at staff that they would virtually be reduced to tears.”

Stay tuned. I think we’re going to hear a lot more.

P.S. Robert is skeptical. Frankly, I am, too. The only thing this stuff proves for sure is that elements of the McCain campaign despise her.

Emanuel’s forced Hamlet act

Am I missing something? Or has the vaunted Obama team suffered a breakdown in discipline regarding U.S. Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., who’s been offered the job of White House chief of staff? Why is Emanuel publicly pondering whether to take it or not? What does this do to the eventual chief of staff if Emanuel turns it down?

I know there’s a lot of speculation out there about many of the positions President-elect Obama will be filling, including the possibility that John Kerry will be given the secretary of state’s job. But the way the Emanuel appointment is being handled is clunky, to say the least. If he turns it down, whoever winds up in the job will be seen as second-rate.