Up Next – Hyperlocal Coverage: Neighborhood Blogs, Community Websites, and the Future of the News

Jul 14 2011

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Jul 14, 2011 at 6:30pm

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First Amendment Lounge

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Special Event

"Is hyperlocal online media the new 5 o'clock news?" This question will be posed at the National Press Club’s new online-focused series, "Get It Online."

In a time when more Americans get their news from the Internet than from newspapers, highly customized neighborhood-centric reporting is on the rise. Washington, D.C. has more than 25 distinct neighborhood-specific bloggers. A number of Web start-ups are creating their own hyperlocal news sites, with larger companies like AOL and Gannett starting their own brands. What is it about the state of modern media that allows these news platforms to exist? Are hyperlocal sites more successful at reporting news than large outlets? Is this is a sustainable model for the future? And where do neighborhood bloggers fit into the new media mix?

The National Press Club presents the panel discussion "Up Next – Hyperlocal Coverage: Neighborhood Blogs, Community Websites, and the Future of the News" as part of its new "Get It Online" series, which introduces the modern media players that deliver news in non-traditional ways. The event will feature some of D.C.'s most popular hyperlocal reporters, including DCist Editor-in-Chief Aaron Morrissey, as well as the writers behind Borderstan, And Now, Anacostia, and Frozen Tropics. Brian Farnham, the Editor-in-Chief of the community-specific news and information platform, Patch, will also give his unique perspective. Kate Michael of K Street Kate, a Press Club member, will moderate.

We will be live-tweeting the panel event (#getitonline #pressclubdc), and a cash bar reception will follow. Admission is Free for NPC members, $10 for non-members and all guests of members. Pre-registering on Eventbrite enters you in a raffle to win two seats at the July 15 NPC Luncheon with Tim Armstrong and Arianna Huffington.

Panelists

Aaron MorrisseyAaron Morrissey, DCist (dcist.com)
Aaron Morrissey arrived in Washington after earning a degree in creative nonfiction at the University of Pittsburgh, and quickly found himself charmed by the intimacy of the District. After three years of covering anything and everything he could get his hands on at DCist -- transit, sports, food, local media, city politics, the Obama Inauguration, Snowpocalypses and the weekend news desk, to name a few -- he was named the site's editor-in-chief in June 2010. He has contributed to the Washington Post, been interviewed on CNN, and has shaken hands with Bob Barker.

Brian FarnhamBrian Farnham, Patch (patch.com)
Brian Farnham is the Editor-in-Chief of Patch.com, a community-specific news and information platform in over 800 towns and neighborhoods across the U.S. Farnham was Editor-in-Chief of Time Out New York magazine before coming to Patch. Before that he worked for a variety of publications both online and off, including Details magazine, New York Magazine, and the old, dearly departed Sidewalk.com. He has written for numerous publications, from the New York Times magazine to Harper's Bazaar. He was chosen as one of SAI/Business Insider's "Silicon Alley 100: New York's Coolest Tech People" in October 2010, as well as Forbes Magazine's "Most Powerful People On Earth" in November 2010 (Arianna Huffington, "My Picks: Media").

David GarberDavid Garber, And Now, Anacostia (anacostianow.com)
David Garber began “And Now, Anacostia” in 2007 as a way to spread positive news about the neighborhood to a more diverse audience and as an extension of his work in urban development and neighborhood preservation. His work and expertise have been highlighted by the Washington Post, Washington City Paper, Washington Examiner, Washingtonian Magazine - where his website was named a 2009 “Best Local Blog,” National Public Radio, Aljazeera English, and HGTV. He works professionally on the Digital and New Media team at the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and was elected Commissioner of Ward 6’s Navy Yard / Capitol Riverfront neighborhood in 2010.

Elise BernardElise Bernard, Frozen Tropics (frozentropics.blogspot.com)
Elise Bernard writes Frozen Tropics, which focuses on the Trinidad and H Street NE neighborhoods in the District. Bernard has been writing her blog for more than six and a half years now, and has enjoyed tracking the changes in the area, as well as interacting online with others who live, work, and play in along the H Street Corridor, and in Trinidad. She's a 32 year old lawyer, a native of Oklahoma, and a ten year resident of her neighborhood.

Matt RhoadesMatt Rhoades, Boderstan (borderstan.com)
Borderstan.com is a news site that covers the Dupont, Logan and U Street neighborhoods in DC. It was founded by Matt Rhoades and Luis Gomez in 2008 and uses local contributors to cover general news, crime, food, arts and entertainment, local business, neighborhood politics, and lifestyle topics. Rhoades works in corporate communications by day and Gomez is a professional photographer.

Kate MichaelKate Michael, K Street Kate (KStreetKate.net) Moderator
Kate Michael is the President and Founder of K Street Kate, an online media company comprised of an online magazine (www.KStreetKate.net) and online talk show (www.TheDistrictDish.com) devoted to lifestyle news about the District of Columbia. Hip, happening and hyper-local, the company was formed while Kate served as Miss District of Columbia 2006 and competed in Miss America in 2007. Wearing a cocktail dress and wielding a FlipCam, Kate provides constant local lifestyle content. Her media portfolio includes live reporting on TBD's Let's Talk Live, a nightlife column on NBC's Niteside and articles in various local magazine publications.