On the last On the Media, Brooke Gladstone talked to Ellen Foley, editor of the Wisconsin State Journal, about their idea of having readers pick one story that should go on the front page from among a few the editors propose. Between 70 and 200 readers take them up on that offer. This from the transcript:
BROOKE GLADSTONE: Jeff Jarvis, whose blog is called buzzmachine.com, wrote that, quote, “The real win will be when papers get their publics to vote on what stories they’re not covering that they should be.”ELLEN FOLEY: Well, isn’t that an interesting idea? The only way I know to get at that is to send human beings out into the community and have them talk to the people who know what’s going on. And we call those people that we send out into the community reporters, and we call those people that know what’s going on, we call them readers. And as old-fashioned as that sounds, I think that that is the best technology for that particular truth-telling that there is at the moment.
I’ll pass by the Dana Carvey Church Lady tone of Foley’s reply and suggest to Editor Foley that there are, indeed, more ways to hear what you’re not covering. A few suggestions:
1. Read local blogs. See what they are saying about issues and stories in your town. Some papers are looking at and even listing blogs that link to their own stories and, like the State Journal’s move, it’s an interesting idea but only a start; they still put the papers at the center of the conversation, expecting people to talk about them. Again, you want to find what they’re talking about that you’re not covering. So read what they’re writing. They’re not just readers anymore.
2. Hire local bloggers to help cover the community. Tell them it’s their job to find what you’re not finding. Challenge them. Pay them — not a fortune but something that recognizes the worth of their effort, too. Go ahead and edit and vet what they find, if you want. It’s the substance that matters. But those people out there know more about what’s happening in their communities than you do. So make the means for them to share that.
3. Start a forum asking what you’re not covering. You’ll get suggestions, I guarantee.
4. Let people vote on beats, not just stories. The next time you hire a reporter or plan a shakeup, give the public choices: Should Sally here cover courts or health, police or pollution, golf or education? Or if you have a layoff coming, ask the public which beats you should eliminate.
5. Hold Meetups. Yes, this is not unlike your reporters going to talk with your “readers.” But then the reporters set the agenda. Set up local issues Meetups where the public sets the agenda. Bring pretzels.
6. Webcast your news meetings so people can have more input than voting on one story. That’s rather like going to a kid’s museum, where they give you buttons to push so you don’t make trouble. Let them make trouble. It’s their news. Hear what they say about how you manufacture the sausage.
7. Start a Digg edition. Go ahead and make your front page. But allow readers to tell you what they think is most important on their front page and let that guide your resource and news judgments.
8. Go Digg one better and create the means where people can vote on the stories they think you should cover. And when one wins, go cover it. Do that before you assign the reporters and write the stories and edit the copy. Make the public your boss.
That’s a start.
Jeff, I think your On the Media link is broken.
Fixed. Thanks.
Your 8-point proposal makes way too much sense … have the MSM actually listen to their customers? Heresy! That means that the customer is in control of content, not the layers of editors. It will never fly.
Darn, this is exactly what I’m building right now, a local Digg. Cat’s out of the bag, must… finish… AJAX…
Hi Mr. Jarvis,
I was hoping you would be able to help me with something. I sent an e-mail for you. The thing is, I’m looking for a publisher. Can you help me?
Thank you so much.
Say hello to New York for me. I miss that city.
Sincerely,
Bluebird
[...] Jeff Jarvis offers Ellen Foley, editor of the Wisconsin State Journal, eight ways to listen to the community it serves. I am struck more and more with how our culture has become fixated on telling and not listening, on delivering the word and not taking the time to have a conversation. What ways to listen would you add to Jarvis’ list? [...]
It’s not a problem exclusive to figures in the media. While Jeff wrote specifically about one aspect of the problem, it’s really something to be found in many industries.
A profound and debilitating inablity to see something in a new way. To see beyond how it’s been done before.
I’ll leave you to carry on this line of thought.
my god, who will have time to do this? have you ever considered that perhaps your interest in this is motivatedby the fact that journalism is your profession? many lawyers, doctors and business folks are simply not interested in controlling what goes on the front page. the front page is what they read when they’re eating breakfast.
and of course, what about the very notion of expertise, or specialization? it’s obvious from your posts that you have no idea about anything other than journalism (your political rants would receive a failing grade in one of my classes), so why should everyone else have the ability to know in a specialized way about journalism?
honestly, if this is the quality of our chattering classes, we’re in big trouble.
[...] Jeff Jarvis runs down another list of advisements to local news organizations trying to stay relevant online. “7. Start a Digg edition. Go ahead and make your front page. But allow readers to tell you what they think is most important on their front page and let that guide your resource and news judgments.” [...]
Ethan,
You don’t need one person to do it all, what you need are many people to do a little bit each. A fact here, a datum there. Confirmation and refutation from around the world by folks willing to take an hour or two in the course of a week or a month.
And who shall fact check? Anyone who has the interest, the knowledge, and willingness.
[...] – DeVigal sneaks a sample podcast out of Austin (from the All-Star Multimedia panel) Still no video from Austin yet. ::clutch and shake fist to the sky:: Day 1 video is starting to appear! [...]
[...] ESTE EXCELENTE post do Buzz Machine tinha-me escapado: How to listen. [...]