23 February Community Building

How do you grow a community online? There are a lot of sites that have a strong following and users feel a strong affiliation towards them. The usual networking sites like Facebook, YouTube, MySpace, Twitter, and LinkedIn are exciting because individuals update profiles and information and other network users enjoy reading about their peers; but the more interesting websites are the ones that weren't created as a community space. Most sites are attempting to create a communal feel allowing for website customization, welcoming comments by visitors, and allowing their visitors to slowly 'take over' the site. Here are a few examples of the transition from one-sided, business websites to public access, community sites.


Vineyard Vines does a great job of creating an on island, feel to an otherwise drafty Internet. The company started small 1998 and has sense grown to be nation and world wide (through the web) but they've still maintained small island appeal. By employing visitors to create a community through pictures and stories you feel right at home on their website. They also bring life to their clothing by offering short vignettes on their own friends, family, and community members. By clicking their 'Whale Tales' you get to know the local boat maker on Martha's Vineyard, the owner of restaurants, and their own employees, all creating a community atmosphere.

Lilly Pulitzer also caters to their loyal following and has built a virtual community through their website and use of facebook. The blog allows for exchange of ideas, information, pictures of everyday customers and fashion tips. This brings customers turned readers in on a regular basis and creates more 'excitement' around the line of clothing.

MooseJaw does a great job of combining corky information, emails, and their facebook group which keeps customers coming back for more. Their emails are often odd/silly and captivate the reader. It also draws a touch of personality to the brand and makes you feel like your a friend. An example of their Valentine's Day mass emailing. MooseJaw also employs a strong community via facebook and if you are a fan of Moosejaw Mountaineering everyday they run a t-shirt contest, drumming up business, interest, and return viewers.

Larger clothing stores are also catering to community. J.CREW has Jenna's picks, a designer who works at J.CREW. They are also sending out emails that allow you to "get to know your designer" and form a relationship.

Athletic based websites like Nike and Mapmyrun allow athletes to connect in a virtual space and keeps the audience active. Nike+ does a great job of organizing an online community. They host marathons that you can do independently and work at cultivating a group of runners worldwide. They also tie in charity run events, allow for blogging, group interaction, and even have a running singles link. Websites like these have turned into a social group and promote participation.

Boston.com approaches local issues and news by offering a comprehensive Boston based website. The site lists events, traffic, shopping, dining, daily politics news, local news as well as national stories of interest. It also creates sub communities by town giving viewers an in depth look at issues that affect their daily lives. Twittering stories, facebook, and comments are all user interaction applications. Bostonians use this site daily to find out what is happening in their community.

5 February 2010 How News Happens

I came across this article that I found rather interesting and a direct connection to our multimedia class. It talks about how news is spread and how people are receiving news. It uses Baltimore, MD as an example city.

Project for Excellence in Journalism goes into greater detail about new media and blogs, and the impact they play in delivering information. (I will comment on the report in greater length this weekend)

Excerpt:

Pew - How News Happens: A Study of the News Ecosystem of One American City
Project for Excellence in Journalism - How News Happens: A Study of the News Ecosystem of One American City, January 11, 2010.

"The study, which examined all the outlets that produced local news in Baltimore, Md., for one week, surveyed their output and then did a closer examination of six major narratives during the week, finds that much of the “news” people receive contains no original reporting. Fully eight out of ten stories studied simply repeated or repackaged previously published information. And of the stories that did contain new information nearly all, 95%, came from traditional media—most of them newspapers. These stories then tended to set the narrative agenda for most other media outlets. The local papers, however, are also offering less than they once did. For all of 2009, for instance, the Sun produced 32% fewer stories on any subject than it did in 1999, and 73% fewer stories than in 1991, when the company still published an evening and morning paper with competing newsrooms. And a comparison of one major story during the week studied—about state budget cuts—found newspapers in the area produced only one-third as many stories in 2009 as they did the last time the state made a similar round of budget cuts in 1991, and the Baltimore Sun one seventh as many. Yet the numbers suggest the addition of new media has not come close to making up the difference."

Connection:
CBS' The Sunday Morning Show touched upon Super Bowl advertising and Pepsi Co. 20+ year involvement in TV ad space. Their decision not to run commercial time during this years Super Bowl might capture the change in multimedia outlets. Pepsi has decided to put their resources into an online, interactive marketing approach called the Pepsi Refresh Project that hopes to foster great ideas and in doing so, change the world all through involvement. This excerpt from The Sunday Morning Show touches upon Pepsi's 'game changing' decision.

"In fact, TV ads — with their catch-phrases and clever story lines that seem to permeate pop culture — often assume significance far beyond the selling of a product. But in an age of multiplying media, fragmented audiences and short attention spans, is advertising as we know it about to change entirely?

Our story begins in the offices of Pepsi-Cola, where an executive there will explain the company’s surprising decision, after 23 years of successful Super Bowl ads, not to run a TV spot in this year’s big game. Instead, they’ve launched an Internet campaign. What if anything does Pepsi’s strategy say about the larger landscape for advertisers?"

Just as citizens have taken to covering and interacting with news firsthand through online blogs, websites and video/camera streaming, the world of advertising is changing in dynamics as well. It will be interesting to observe this change in appealing to a demographic and if Pepsi's revolution from TV to internet pays off.

2 February 2010 Topic vs. Story

In our last class we discussed the difference between covering an event from a story level versus a topical level. When reporting on an event from the story level it provides a more focused look into a specific topic. The story doesn't have 'legs' because many times the facts and story itself have changed. These stories lack longevity because as time progresses, more information is learned about the matter and thus the initial story morphs. When reporting on a subject from a topical level one is looking more at trends, history, and the story tends to have repeat visitors because the coverage is more holistic.


Possible Headline Quote: "Sunday, Sunday, Sunday...Off to a Sensational Start"

As we are in the midst of Super Bowl excitement, I think it would be interesting to look at Super Bowl coverage from a topical and story based angle. This NBC Sports article is a prime example of evolving news and a specific focus. "Early media talk focuses on Freeney's ankle" and even calls out the sensationalism in the 'story' by saying, "Hype surrounding Super Bowl XLIV not hitting usual din of previous games." The article points out its storyline, "For once, members of the media could focus on an actual storyline before the Super Bowl - how is Dwight Freeney's ankle?"



This is relevant news for Super Bowl fans and could determine the outcome of Sunday's game, but this story will no doubt evolve as the week continues. The story will remain but with more factual information and with Freeney's ankle progress, the facts will change.

Looking at Super Bowl XLIV from a topical standpoint portrays a whole different angle on The Bowl Game as this article exemplifies. "Excess Rules at Super Bowl and That's No Ballyhoo" written by Mike Tanier of The New York Times, recounts the history of the Super Bowl and how it came to be one of America's most facinating sporting events. The article gives history of the Bowl and charts its 'Super Sized Programming.' The following excerpt allows you to see the difference in tone versus the story coverage above.

"The A.F.L.-N.F.L. championship game was a hard sell in 1967, when the leagues were separate and unequal. N.F.L. Commissioner Pete Rozelle needed a prestigious championship game to legitimize a newly minted merger with the less-established American Football League. So Rozelle, a former public-relations specialist, used his marketing expertise to surround the game with hype, or hoopla or ballyhoo, as it was called at the time.

Rozelle adopted the grandiose Super Bowl name — coined by the Kansas City Chiefs’ owner, Lamar Hunt — and he commissioned Tiffany to create the Titletown Trophy (later renamed for Vince Lombardi). He persuaded NBC and CBS to simulcast the game for $1 million each, and he raised Los Angeles Coliseum ticket prices to $12 from $6, to increase revenue and, more important, to give the game prestige."

Both story and topic reporting inform the audience on different levels. One focuses attention on a specific, while the tropical report offers a broader view. This is just an example of two ways an audience can be informed of events.

2 Ways I would cover Super Bowl Sunday:

Story:

1. Interview Bon Jovi and get his reaction on headlining the Super Bowl's halftime show. Interview would include halftime preparation and set list.

2. Fans could also be interviewed from past Bon Jovi concerts to determine how this performance might rank with his previous concerts. As this event has yet to happen, the story would simply be an introduction and specific vignette on Bon Jovi's involvement. Individuals from Bon Jovi's facebook group would also be contacted and connected.

3. Track stage crew as well as event planners for halftime show, capture setup and issues in a documentary setting. (Film rehearsals and sound bites.)

4. Meet with volunteers and carry one-two stories on their careers as dancers, backup singers, children involved in act etc.

5. Interview security and legal team to pinpoint main issues of halftime show.

6. Interview costume designers on choice of fabrics, theme, custom assembly.

Topic: Recap the history of halftime shows starting with the inception of The Super Bowl.

1. Historical data such as run time, list of performances/performers, controversial performances and reaction would all be highlighted.

2. Money spent on halftime coordination and the actual implementation of halftime performances would also be gathered and presented in bar graph form.

3. A timeline of events would be created showing factual data that pertains to the show. The timeline would also list main events of the year and fashion/musical interest allowing the viewing audience to understand the culture of the time.

4. Number of participants, money spent, hours of rehearsal, money earned could be organized in chart form - this would be rich in pictures and video of performances.

5. Number of tv viewers, increase in tv viewers for halftime, etc. would all come into play. I would also conduct a study to see if approval and popularity ratings increased after the said performers appearance on Super Bowl Sunday through record revenue.

I would parcel the information using a tv frame image with various links to halftime shows/information within the tv set itself - capturing the evolution of time. This would give the online audience a point of reference. Rough Example:

All of this factual information would give the audience a holistic view of halftime performances.