a digital project for your community

A Digital Projectfor Your Community

Steve ButtryTexas Center for Community Journalism

March 7, 2013#tccj

Read more about it• stevebuttry.wordpress.com• slideshare.net/stevebuttry• sbuttry@digitalfirstmedia.com• @stevebuttry

Projects we’ll discuss• Live coverage• Community blogs• Community Pinboards• National anthem• Commissioned obituaries (life stories)• Class of 2013 (if we have time)• Weddings (if we have time)

Why live coverage?• You’re at those events anyway• Work differently, not more work (mostly)• You’re a newspaper & this is news• Deep engagement• Turns weekly (& daily) into now

Livetweeting• Set context: Event, where you are• Use hashtag• Feed into site (widget or ScribbleLive)• Prep (check spellings, get program,

reports, etc.)• You’re reporting, not transcribing

Live-tweeting tips• OK to pause for checking facts, names• Note significant pause (halftime, lunch)• Fun interludes, exchanges, anecdotes• Read, fact-check before you hit “tweet”

Live-tweeting situations• Trials• Meetings• Sporting events (curate w/ public tweets:

Friday Night Tweets)• Festivals• Breaking stories• Remember to feed live-tweets into site

Friday night tweets• Sports writers use hashtag(s)• Feed tweets into your website• Recruit high school journos to tweet

scores from their teams• Use hashtag(s) for region, maybe teams• Use players’ @ usernames• Encourage fans to use hashtag(s)

Other live opportunities• Live chat (regular or special)• Live webcam (wildlife, storm, disaster)• Hangout chat or interview, livestreamed

using YouTube• Pick up livestream embed from public

agency• U-Stream, Qik

Community blogs• Network w/ existing blogs• Network w/ community social media

(Facebook pages, Twitter, YouTube)• Host blogs around community topics

(you get to sell the ads)• Pitch opportunity to tell their stories

Possible group blogs• Community clubs• Youth sports• Worship organizations• Music (choirs, marching bands, garage

bands, youth recitals)• Businesses (adverblogs?)

National anthem contest• People in community sing “Star-Spangled

Banner”• Enter by YouTube• Set up ballot• Community picks finalists• Finalists sing live w/ judges• Winner sings at community event (July

4?)

Other contest possibilities• March Madness• Mother’s Day• Father’s Day• Valentine’s• Any holiday• Your ideas?

Community Pinboards• Food, fashion, weddings, travel• Bridal content (more on that later)• Sports team photos• Wanted posters• Remember-when photos • Crosspost on Facebook

Personal content• Births• Youth milestones• School• Graduation• College life• Military service• Weddings• Parenthood

• Divorce• Jobs, pets, holidays,

food, interests, health• Illness• Empty nesters• Retirement• Reunions• Obituaries

Obituaries (life stories)• Free obits are formulaic• Paid obits, written by relatives or funeral

directors, can be amateurish• Would some families commission obits?• Story, booklet, video, book (pre-planned)• Other milestone occasions (anniversary,

retirement, big birthday)

Graduation• Many newspapers gather mugs, names

anyway for graduation section• Launch page for each graduate• Senior, family fill in stories, photos, videos• Gift registry• Fill in school, target ads appear• Fill in career, sign up for email, text alerts• Interface w/ Facebook, Pinterest

Weddings• You get engagement & wedding

announcements anyway• Many newspapers do bridal guide• Why not play matchmaker (brides &

vendors)?• Why not gift registry?• Life story opportunity?

Weddings• Facebook (share buttons, maybe a FB

group) • Pinterest (dresses, venues, cakes)

Innovation in a small staff• Engage the community (not free labor,

but multiplying your labor)• Lack resources, but more nimble• Publish digital first, edit for print• Consider innovation “vacations”• Community partnerships, internships• Collaborate (TPA, TCCJ, universities,

nearby news orgs, community orgs)

Work on an idea• Personal content (obits, graduation,

weddings, something else)• Live coverage (upcoming events)• Pinterest• Community blogs• Community contest• What else?

Our only rule

Today, for this discussion, everything is possible:

Don’t worry about money, technology, skills, staffing, time …