Apr 7, 2010

You remember print, right?

For all the the talk of how the internet and the iThingy will save journalism, there’s one thing that computer technology can’t do: deliver information to people who exist off the grid.

Some of them can’t afford a computer or monthly internet service charges. Others don’t bother with the English-heavy net because they speak some other language. Still others live beyond the cable company’s reach. Whether by choice or necessity, these people just don’t do the web.

That doesn’t mean they should go without access to community news. What it means is hyperlocalists must apply a different approach to news distribution, even if that means using technology that’s distinct from their primary mode.

One form of news distribution familiar to non-techies is probably print. (There’s also broadcast, but I’ll get into that later this week.) Most online hyperlocalists use broadsheets only as marketing material — it’s much cheaper than handing out free iPads to prospective readers. Recently, California Watch printed an investigative report for distribution and promotion, and I’ve done similar stuff with content from my former hyperlocal site.

But what if the broadsheet were to become a regular thing for online outlets? Obviously, printing content with the same immediacy as posting online would be expensive, perhaps prohibitively so. But a daily or weekly broadsheet should be enough to deliver news in a timely way.

Also, broadsheets don’t necessarily have to be fliers given to individual readers. Back in the day, broadsheets were single, poster-sized sheets of paper posted in town squares and gathering spots. The same can be done today at coffee shops, supermarkets, transit stations, houses of worship, or the shop windows of supportive businesses. (Perhaps those supportive businesses can even pay for printing costs in exchange for the foot traffic the broadsheet might bring.)

I haven’t compared the cost of printing a single large sheet versus a stack of letter-sized fliers. But posting one big broadsheet certainly would cut down on the cost and energy required to distribute fliers to individual readers.

The best part: no net neutrality required.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user Dorrell Merritt.

Apr 5, 2010

Back on the grid

It only took ten days to move into my new hyperlocal digs, but alas, it’s done. For nearly two weeks, I lived on pizza and cheese sandwiches, burst digital bubbles on my signal-less cell phone, and wrestled an aerial antenna for a better reception of “Jerry Springer.”

For hard-core techies, that scene signals the end of civilization. But my temporary disconnect from online reality gave me a greater appreciation for real reality, the one that exists (and it does) beyond the internet.

It also allowed me to consider how hyperlocalists can better serve the underserved — and by underserved, I’m not just talking about plugged-in communities without a local newspaper or news website. I’m talking about communities that don’t even appear on the grid: lower-income neighborhoods without broadband, communities in which English is not the primary language, even sparsely populated rural communities.

The net might not penetrate those areas, but hyperlocalists can still serve them using different, even “primitive” technologies. Expect the next few blog posts to look into this idea.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user Spikenzie.

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