Newsvine is a combination of both a blogging community as well as a news website that works to publish articles from both citizen journalists and from mainstream sources such as The Associated Press. By doing this Newsvine is able to give an accurate and up to date reflection of what the world is talking about at any given moment.

Who was it founded by and what was the idea at the start?

Founders Mike Davidson, Calvin Tang, Lance Anderson and Mark Budos, and Josh Yockey, Tom Laramee came together in spring of 2005. On March 1, 2006, the site was launched to the public. The initial goal of the blog was “to build a perfectly different, perfectly efficient way to read, write, and interact with the news” (newsvine.com).

Who owns it now and how is it organized, business-wise?

On October 5, 2007 Newsvine.com became a wholly-owned subsidiary of MSNBC Interactive News. The company was bought for an “undisclosed sum” and was the first acquisition that MSNBC.com has made in 11 years.

What’s the business model, as far as you can determine?

The business runs simply as an open source news service; there are no editors to filter content. Newsvine makes it’s money through advertising in and around AP and other wire content, as well as the content of its users.

Who is the target audience, in the old fashioned sense: the likely consumer of the site’s content?

The sites demographic consists of 88% male, 78% 18 – 39 year olds, 30% household income above 75k, and 54% of whom publish their own blog.  But regardless of their actual audience their target audience is anyone who wants to write, read, discuss and learn about current events and the news.

What can users do at newsvine.com? What are their powers, so to speak?

In terms of power over other stories, users have the power to vote on stories, which helps determine the placement of story around Newsvine as well as influences the author’s reputation level on Newsvine. You can also comment on people’s stories and engage in discussion with others.

In terms of power over ones own activity, users of Newsvine can register to their own column where they have to the ability to write their own stories. Also you can “seed” to other outside sources which essentially means posting links for others to view.

Who are the ideal users of the site, the ones newsvine.com is truly made for?

Founder Mike Davidson has repeatedly emphasized that Newsvine is not a personal blog and it should not be treated as such. It was made as a platform to talk, share and learn about the news for people who want to have an intelligent and meaningful discussions.

What do the most active users–the power users, the super-contributors- tend to do at the site?

The “super contributors” of this site are easy to find because they are the users with the most “vineacity” which means that have higher reputation levels and ratings (for more information on “vineacity” see below). These users have a certain number of votes and comments on each of their articles and they may also be on other users “watch lists” which will inform users on the activity of that certain person on newsvine (i.e alerts when they right articles etc.)

How does that differ from what more casual users would do?

As previously mentioned newsvine is not a personal blog. More casual users would be more apt to miss the goal of the blog and submit more trivial articles. As said by Mike Davidson at the Media Management Center’s Digital Strategies seminar “Anyone who has ever taken a casual stroll through the blogosphere knows how many ‘I just walked my dog!’ stories there are out there. There’s a place for that—and its your personal blog. Its not for Newsvine.”

Anything especially nifty or extremely effective about the technology available at the site?

One of the most technologically innovative aspects of Newsvine is a feature called “Newsvis”. Newsvis is a visual representation of the activity of the most recent content on Newsvine. It appears as a spectrum bar ranging from green to blue to red. Articles are represented by a column within this bar. The more votes an article receives the thicker the column becomes. The color of the columns refers to how recently the article was posted (green being the newest and red being the oldest). Newsvis is helpful because it a quick and easy way to find out which articles are getting to most attention on the site.

How about any features of the site that work really really well?

One thing that is interesting about the commenting feature of Newsvine is that they it’s ordered chronologically, older posts appearing in front of the newer posts. This is important because it fosters discussion based on what others said (since you have to scroll through everyone’s comments to be able to make your own) instead of simply reactionary comments, which ignores comment history and inhibit discussion.

What do the Newsvine community standards say?

Newsvine has a code of honor which focuses on five main community standards.  These include respecting other users, prohibiting self promotion, relating story headlines to the story content, writing stories responsibly, and following the code of honor and user agreement. For further information regarding the Code of Conduct you can visit:

http://www.newsvine.com/_cms/help/faq_honor

How active would you say the users are in communally enforcing those standards?

Generally users are strict in enforcing theses previously mentioned community standards.  Inappropriate comments and articles are reported and deleted from the site accordingly. There is also community incentive to follow the rules in order to increase ones “vinacity” (see below for more details regarding “vinacity”).

Divison of labor:  What work does the Newsvine professional staff do to make the site “go?”

Newsvine staff tries to have as little involvement as possible in controlling the site. There is no editorial voice of Newsvine, so the staff’s contributions are limited to making sure the site is running properly and evolving accordingly in order to keep Newsvine a good platform for its users to discuss the news.

As distinct from… What work does the user community do that makes the site go?

In order to keep Newvine running efficiently users must uphold the Code of Honor, as well as be active in the site by voting, commenting, writing stories and seeding links. Without the participation of the users the site would lose much of its content as well as its ranking and filtering system.

What kind of reputation system is there for contributors to the site?

Newsvine prides itself on having a particularly thorough reputation system known as “Vineacity”. Vineacity is a measure of one’s overall level of contribution to Newsvine. It is used to display the relative productivity and credibility of Newsvine users. By using Newsvine regularly and responsibly, your Vineacity should will over time naturally. For more information clink on the “vineacity” link on http://www.newsvine.com/_cms/help/faq_yourcolumn

What other mechanisms are there for creating trust at the site and how do they work?

As another method of community building, Newsvine allows user to join certain “groups”. These groups are meant for users to collect in a smaller, more specific setting and engage with others who share commen interests. These groupa can be either open for all to join or they can be private and only open to those who are invited.

What do you think binds the user community together?

The main unifier among the users of Newsvine is that they all share the common goal of distributing and receiving the news. Because of this shared purpose there is a sense of comradery that exists amount users who are all interested in spread and sharing intelligent information and discussion.

Why do you think people come back to newsvine.com? What are they getting by returning?

What keeps users of Newsvine coming back is it’s ability to produce legitimate journalism in an online medium. Newsvine is free from frivolous blog posts that other sights, especially more casual blog sites, may contain. It is this high quality of citizen journalism, this legitimate news source blended with online blogging community, that keeps newsvine so popular.

Finally, is the community at newsvine.com capable of doing actual journalism?

Journalism is simply the process of collecting, writing, editing, and publishing news. In this sense Newsvine is certainly able to produce actual journalism. In a more “traditional” sense of the word, Newsvine contributors consistently meet standards of reporting that you find at any major newspaper.

Is it capable of doing great journalism?

Great journalism can be defined as the process of collecting, writing, editing, and publishing news that is factual, original, pertinent and informative. Is Newsvine capable of this? That is up to its users. As long as the users of Newsvine keep using the site responsibly, following the code of honor and the purpose of the site, then there is no reason that great journalism could not be produced.

What is Daily Kos and what is its reason for living, what’s it there for?

Dailykos is the brainchild of Markos Moulitsas, who goes by the screen name of Kos. According to a blog post by him in 2004, “[Dailykos is] a Democratic blog with one goal in mind: electoral victory.” Dailykos functions as a news source and meeting-place for people supportive of this goal. It is a gathering spot for liberal-minded people who value and participate in the political process, and is particularly useful to those interested in taking a more active role in government by supporting the Democratic party’s candidates and policies.

Who was it founded by and what was the idea at the start?

Kos began his website in 2002 as an outlet for his distress with the Bush administration. As a veteran, he was offended that American freedoms were being encroached upon by government institutions like the Patriot Act, and his conscience demanded dissent and action. As Kos puts it, “[Dailykos was created] in those dark days when an oppressive and war-crazed administration suppressed all dissent as unpatriotic and treasonous.” His original goals—chronicling Republican harm, speaking out against what he saw as a troubled government, instigating and fostering change—attracted innumerable supporters. In just five years, Dailykos has evolved into a behemoth community that campaigns for change and represents one of the largest online political presences in the country.

Who owns it now and how is it organized, business-wise?

In terms of ownership, Dailykos is a bit of a monarchy. Kos, the founder of the site, owns Kos Media, LLC, which owns Dailykos. This monopoly of executive power gives Kos the final say on all business decisions. Unlike some other sites, which are owned by large media conglomerates, have had outside investors from their inception, or have been sold by their original creators, Dailykos is wholly controlled by its founder financially and creatively. This means that Kos is a king of sorts; he commands his domain entirely, and has from its beginning.

What’s the business model, as far as you can determine?
Dailykos was originally funded with Kos’ own money and donations from readers; that changed quickly, and the website became ad-based soon after its inception. Currently, revenue comes almost exclusively from advertisements, mostly done by Adsense and Blogads. Extremely heavy traffic, averaging 3-5 million weekly visits, allows ad prices to range upwards of $12500 a week.

Who is the target audience, in the old fashioned sense: the likely consumer of the site’s content?
Dailykos is an actively partisan website which aims to further the Democratic party and its ideals. While opinions definitely differ here, and even the casual observer will note that users often engage in spirited debate about relevant issues, virtually all visitors boast a relatively left-leaning worldview. This site is most useful—and most enjoyable—to politically active liberals in strong support of the DNC. Those who consider their political ties only on voting day are not likely to find many friends here, as Dailykos is almost perpetually raising money and awareness for their party, and consider their work both never-ending and hugely important for the country’s progress. Netizens seeking tepid political opinions or a ‘balanced’ news source, beware: Dailykos is, by and large, the habitat of some very yellow dog Democrats.

What can users do at Daily Kos? what are their powers, so to speak?

Users are heard mostly through their diaries. Diaries are more or less blog posts—as their name at this site implies, only one entry per day is allowed. Technically, diary entries can cover any subject, but they most often deal with topics pertinent to the community—political happenings, Democratic victories, defeats, and goings-on, political races, and the like. Visibility of a particular blog post is determined by other users; readers with Dailykos accounts can ‘recommend’ a diary entry, and a diary with enough recommendations will be displayed on the front page. In addition to writing and rating diaries, users can comment on an entry, which often leads to lively discourse amongst users about a controversial topic (though, it could be noted, just as often leads to copious head-nodding and variants on the phrase “right on, brother.”) Particularly valued users have other abilities discussed later in this FAQ.

Who are the ideal users of the site, the ones Daily Kos is truly made for?

Dailykos is more focused than many other blogging communities. While many sites have an underlying theme and a well-defined target audience, most are principally forums for exchanging ideas. Kos created his website with a different goal in mind: while information exchange is certainly a vital part of the community, its main purpose is to advance the Democratic party. As such, the ideal user of Dailykos does not merely contribute to diaries and comments, but actually helps further this cause. Those who donate to political candidates, canvass, write positive reviews of Democratic policy on other websites, and otherwise actively participate in the political process are model Dailykos users.

What do the most active users–the power users, the super-contributors- tend to do at the site?

A few elite, high-powered users have been invited to become Contributing Editors. These writers have unlimited posting abilities, and often post several items a day. Most significantly, their entries get posted straight to the front page—not as a link, as recommended diaries do. The contributions of the Contributing Editors (along with Kos’ numerous daily posts) make up the bulk of the Front Page. The second, lesser tier of ‘power-users’ are elected by having both an active account and a certain number of recommended comments on the website. These trusted users are given special responsibilities that include hiding inappropriate or inconsequential comments from view and removing inappropriate tags from diaries. This policing of the website by its own contributors, instead of by some establishment or outside authority, lends an air of legitimacy to the website; at Dailykos, users tend to engage in genuine discourse, rather than blindly state opinions or have senseless arguments and ‘flame wars,’ as is often the case at other websites.

How does that differ from what more casual users would do?

The casual user is the backbone of Dailykos—the everyday community members who write dairies, though they may never be rated highly, and participate in discussion and feedback through comments, though they may not get much recognition for it. Dailykos is rather meritocratic; its ‘power users’ are simply casual users who add material to the website more often. Thus, the main differences between those deemed trusted users by Kos and the average citizen is more or less a matter of hours logged. There is one caveat, however: in order to work up the number of recommended comments necessary to become a trusted user, quality is just as important as quantity. As such, these tend to be people who write intelligible, thoughtful responses and are well-respected by their online peers because of it.

Anything especially nifty or extremely effective about the technology available at the site?

While Dailykos is generally an impressively designed website, one particularly interesting piece of technology is the ability to expand and collapse comments. Comment threads on popular diaries can soar into the hundreds, but Dailykos eschews the standard method of displaying them. Instead of hundreds of bulky boxes one after another that lengthen the page indeterminately, comments are presented only by their titles, with buttons to expand or collapse entries worth reading. Furthermore, they are visibly organized into subthreads, allowing several conversations to go on at once with a minimum of confusion. This clean and organized commenting design is easy to overlook, but vital to mass participation, as it’s very easy to get exactly where you’d like in a discussion.

How about any features of the site that work really really well?

Dailykos thrives on ratings; strongly-rated diaries get more views, and users with strongly-rated comments are promoted to trusted status. As such, it makes sense that the rating system is devilishly simple to use. In the sidebar of every diary is a large ‘recommend’ button; beside every comment is a checkbox with ‘recommend’ next to it. One click is all it takes; there is no redirecting through pages, no distractions from the story, no extra information needed. This straightforward interface allows recommendations to function as they should, without human laziness getting in the way. Dailykos is in general a master of simple one-click actions. Every user is given a place to compile their favorite stories—the Hotlist—and their favorite diaries—their Subscriptions. Sure enough, next to every diary entry title are unobtrusive ‘hotlist’ and ‘subscribe’ buttons, both of which add stories and authors to their respective lists without interrupting the user. The ability to both rate the community and compile a working list of favorite entries from it with only a modicum of effort ensures many more people will participate in these features.

What do the Dailykos community standards say?
The closest thing to a list of community standards for Dailykos can be found in this diary post by Dailykos user pastordan. Essentially, when interacting with other users, members are urged to “be polite, don’t make assumptions, [and] listen carefully to what they have to say.” The community works to remove “trolls” and all comments that are considered to be “troll-rated”, that is, comments that are “basically devoid of content, add nothing to the conversation, and/or are offensive”, can be hidden from its thread. Users can give these “troll” comments a rating of 1 and trusted users can give a rating of 0. When a comment’s average ranking falls below 1, the comment is made invisible. Users who receive too many “troll-rated” comments can be banned from Dailykos. Users are expected to use discretion when rating comments. Comments should only be “troll-rated” when they are offensive or irrelevant, not when the user disagrees with another user’s opinion.

How active would you say the users are in communally enforcing those standards?

From what we have seen, users are very active in enforcing these standards. It is evident when browsing Dailykos that there is a very strong sense of community. The typical user of Dailykos cares enough about the well-being of the community they have worked so hard to establish that they do not it to be tarnished by useless or offensive posts.

Divison of labor:  What work does the Dailykos professional staff do to make the site “go?”

Dailykos’s six paid staffers and seventeen contributing editors have the ability to post to the front page of the site. They post major developments in the news that they think could spark the interest of their users. A few times per day, Kos posts an open thread with links to what other people are talking about throughout the web and Blogosphere. This helps set the tone for the rest of the site and gives Dailykos users news to consider when they are publishing their own individual diary entries.

As distinct from… What work does the user community do that makes the site go?

The users play an important role in sorting through diary entries and selecting which are the best. There is a seemingly endless flow of diary entries being posted to Dailykos around the clock. But not everything that is posted to Dailykos is good. Some diaries are decent, some are really great, but then there are others that are downright awful and irrelevant. It would be impossible for Markos and his staff to sort through all these posts themselves. That is why having such a large community of passionate users is essential to Dailykos. The users read through the diaries and they have the ability to recommend those they like best. If enough users think a particular diary entry is important, it will find its way onto the most recommended diaries list that is posted on the front page of Dailykos. The staff does not have to do anything but sit back and watch.

What kind of reputation system is there for contributors to the site?

Over time, members of the Dailykos community can become “trusted users.” Users gain the title ‘trusted’ or ‘power’ according to the amount of activity they have on the site and the number of recommendations their comments and diaries receive. Trusted users have the responsibility of helping to curtail trolls and police the community. They have the ability to give comments they deem inappropriate a rating of 0, as opposed to regular users who can only rank on a scale of 1 to 4. They also review hidden comments to determine whether the comment should remain hidden or if it perhaps should return to its thread because it advances the conversation in some way. The trusted status is not permanent, however, and can be taken away if the user posts too many 1 or 0 rated comments.

What other mechanisms are there for creating trust at the site and how do they work?

The precise workings of the Dailykos’ “mojo system” is kept secret to prevent users from deliberately going about trying to gain trust on the site. Users know when they have reached trusted user status when they discover they have the ability to review hidden comments and give 0 ratings. But there are other incentives for being an exemplary user of Dailykos. In a typical year, Kos will also select two or three outstanding contributing members of the community to become contributing editors to the site. It is a very selective process and few Dailykos users are picked. Contributing editors can post directly to the front page of Dailykos, giving their diaries the greatest visibility and attention. This is a very sought after position considering the popularity of the Dailykos community.

What do you think binds the user community together?

The community is truly bound together in their desire to achieve Democratic electoral victory. This desire is even greater than at other liberal blogging communities. The average Democrat would not concern themselves with Senate races in Georgia or Minnesota, or House races in places they have never heard of. But these are things the users at Dailykos care about because they want to see Democrats elected at all levels of government.

Why do you think people come back to Dailykos? What are they getting by returning?

The kind of information that is gathered at Dailykos is very specific. Dailykos is distrinct from other left-leaning blogs in that Democratic-electoral victory is an obsession for Dailykos users. There is a lot of talk about money and fundraising at Dailykos, where as other liberal blogs usually focus more on the issues. During the past election cycle, Dailykos was an invaluable resource for anyone who wanted the latest poll data on any number of elections. Dailykos sorted through the information and told its users which Congressional races were tightening and which candidates were in the greatest need of money and resources. After reading Dailykos, users knew exactly who needed their support.

Finally, is the community at Dailykos capable of doing actual journalism?

The community is certainly capable of doing actual journalism. But as far as we can tell, Dailykos users do not typically go about doing so. Rather, users usually provide their commentary on the news as opposed to their own reporting. Dailykos did feature a diary entry in August that gained a lot of attention because it alleged that Governor Sarah Palin faked her most recent pregnancy in an attempt to cover for her teenage daughter. But these allegations turned out to be untrue, the diary was uncited and the identity of the individual who posted the diary is unknown. While it was information that was nowhere in the press, and therby original, one could not call this sort of writing journalism.

Is it capable of doing great journalism?

Dailykos could certainly be an outlet for great journalism in the future, but up to this point, there is no evidence of great journalism to be found on the site.

Blogher.com is a community of users interested in sharing their opinions, advice, ideas, and personal experiences with others in order to participate in a supportive and active environment. Blogher.com lives for women who have the objective of uplifting other women, while at the same time gaining inspiration and success for themselves.

Who was it founded by and what was the idea at the start?

Elisa Camahort, Lisa Stone, and Jory des Jardins started Blogher as a way to expose women to a supportive community of contacts that will encourage and help their economic, educational, and social empowerment.

Who owns it now and how is it organized, business-wise?

Blogher is currently owned by original founders Elisa Camahort, Lisa Stone, and Jory Des Jardins. Blogher currently receives investments from capital firm Venrock. BlogHer has recently partnered with NBC and iVillage in an effort to reach out to more women. BlogHer also works with sponsors on their website and for their annual conferences.

What’s the business model, as far as you can determine?

While providing platforms to connect women with each other, Blogher also connects consumers with marketers. The site and its events are powered mainly through advertisements. Sponsors provide special deals for Blogher users.

Who is the target audience, in the old fashioned sense: the likely consumer of the site’s content?

Blogher is mainly aimed at women of 35+ years, who are technologically literate and extremely active in political and social spheres. However, this site is also open to both males and females of various ages who want to become apart of this community.

What can users do at blogher.com? What are their powers, so to speak?

Users can write articles on any topic, comment, list their own blogs, participate in contests and book festivals, sign up to participate in or speak at conferences, and make money by using Blogher advertising on their personal blogs. Users can also donate money to improve maternal health of women and save lives from all over the world.

Who are the ideal users of the site, the ones blogher.com is truly made for?

Blogher is perfect for those who are highly active both on the internet and in real life, hoping to make connections. Also, for people who are searching for opinions on very specific topics.

What do the most active users–the power users, the super-contributors- tend to do at the site?

They write thought provoking articles and regularly interact with their readers and other users through comments.

How does that differ from what more casual users would do?

Most users only read and never interact or generate content of their own. They do not use the site as frequently as the power users.

Anything especially nifty or extremely effective about the technology available at the site?

No, the site could actually use a lot of improvement. The Search function works terribly as the results it returns are rarely relevant, making it very hard to find new content. Additionally, the UI is poorly designed which makes it difficult to find information.

What do the blogher.com community standards say?

BlogHer promotes differences of ideas but does reserve the right to monitor comments or posts that are blatantly disrespectful or not well thought out.

How active would you say the users are in communally enforcing those standards?

The users all abide by the community standards and create a very positive atmosphere. I would imagine that any distasteful content would be immediately flagged because the community is so proactive and does pride itself on its standards.

Division of labor: What work does the blogher professional staff do to make the site “go?”

There are editors for each section who regularly post feature articles and reply to comments. The staff monitors and updates the website, contacts sponsors and partners, organizes conferences, and solicits new ideas from its users.

As distinct from… What work does the user community do that makes the site go?

The community supplies the content that makes visitors want to revisit on the site and refer the site to others. They create an encouraging and knowledgeable community that connects the various users.

What kind of reputation system is there for contributors to the site?

There is no ranking system. However, personal profiles show the user’s recent activity including posts and comments.

What other mechanisms are there for creating trust at the site and how do they work?

Users are encouraged to link back to their personal blogs and provide a thorough profile. This allows users to get to know each other better and know the context in which they write posts or comments.

What do you think binds the user community together?

People are so knowledgeable on so many different subjects and they are fully open to share and be supportive of each other. It is incredibly supportive and rational in addressing niche topics.

Why do you think people come back to blogher.com? What are they getting by returning?

People go to BlogHer to find unique opinions presented in an unapologetic, yet, open manner.

Finally, is the community at blogher.com capable of doing actual journalism?

Yes. Mainstream Journalism focuses only on so many things because it has an obligation to satisfy the whole. BlogHer has no obligation and chooses what it, not a corporation, thinks is important. Something that could be overlooked by MSM in significance would certainly be picked up by BlogHer users who have a much more intimate knowledge and obsession of that topic.

Is it capable of doing great journalism?

Yes. BlogHer users are very professional in writing their posts and most of them are professionals in their fields, giving them an expertise and education well suited to writing. As an individual, it may be difficult and rare, but especially with everyone working together and contributing, BlogHer could be called upon to produce great journalism.

            Ireport is a blogging community, set up by CNN for several different reasons. One reason for the life of this community is for the users themselves (http://www.ireport.com/about.jspa), as claimed by the founders of the site.  However, there is a double purpose that benefits both CNN and the users.  Motivation of “15 minutes of fame” creates incentive for users.  It also becomes an outlet for free, usable content for CNN to use on their website and television program.  Also, it places CNN in the better graces of the bloggers- there is a sense of unity amongst this new “blogging world” and the “old journalism” news source.

2. Who was it founded by and what was the idea at the start?

             In August of 2006, CNN began iReport as part of its own website.  In the beginning, every story and submission that appeared on the site was vetted by a CNN producer before appearing on the website or television.  However, after several instances (namely the Virginia Tech shooting—after CNN got video footage from a student witnessing the shooting) CNN decided to make it a separate site altogether.

 3. Who owns it now and how is it organized, business-wise? 

            CNN bough the URLs ireport.com and i-report.com from Rick Schwartz for $750,000 at the beginning of 2008. Business-wise, this blogging community is now organized as a website separate from CNN itself.  The content coming from the bloggers on the site are unfiltered and unedited.  It is organized as a user-generated site as the users are the ones who promote people to “superstar” status, newsiest stories, and even filter stories.  Seven staff members go through and edit numbers of stories for CNN to use. (http://advancingthestory.wordpress.com/2008/09/11/what-cnn-has-learned-from-ireport/ )

4. What’s the business model, as far as you can determine?

     By creating a site such as ireport.com, CNN has the ability to use the bloggers’ news and material for free on their website and television program.  CNN basically owns the right to utilize contributor’s photos or videos whenever they wish. (http://www.lastpodcast.net/2008/02/11/cnn-to-launch-ireportcom/).  This free material from contributors all over the world becomes one less expense for CNN to have to pay.  Since CNN has to cover news 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, this helps them fill some of their time.  Also, CNN reporters cannot be everywhere at all times.  This website is an outlet for CNN to receive information and footage from people in the midst of breaking news.  CNN is also able to see what is charting as “news” according to the ratings of iReport members.

5. Who is the target audience, in the old fashioned sense: the likely consumer of the site’s content?

                  The target audience is people who are in the midst of news-  who are aware of what is going on in the world, and have something to say about it.  The likely customer is one who has access to stories before any other news source does, and is willing to share his/her experiences and opinions to personalize his/her news by putting in individual stories and perspectives.

6. What can users do at ireport.com? what are their powers, so to speak?

      Users at ireport are able to upload videos, audio, pictures, as well as comment on the staff blogs.  However, a feature that is lacking is the actual blog aspect.  Rather than letting the users write their own blogs, they are only allowed to comment on what staffers have written. Therefore, ireport.com has been commonly associated with the site youtube.com, as opposed to another blogging community.

7. Who are the ideal users of the site, the ones ireport.com is truly made for?

            The ideal users of ireport.com are people who have something worthwhile to contribute to the assignment desk, which is a way to get people to participate in stories that just may make it on CNN. The ideal user is the one who can feed CNN “worthy” material- in the sense that it contains both quality as well as quantity.  They help to distinguish what a “good” story is, as well as good photos, videos and audio files.

8. What do the most active users–the power users, the super-contributors- tend to do at the site? 

                  The superstars are the members who constantly update their stories and their profiles.  They keep up with the relevant topics, respond to many of the assignments and stay away from irrelevant, restricted material.  Because superstars are determined by ratings, contributions, popularity and site activity, they tend to be the most proactive members of the site.

9. How does that differ from what more casual users would do?

             More casual users might post irrelevant material, or even post nothing.  Instead of being a proactive part of the community, they may just chime in whenever a post catches their interest or they feel like voicing their opinion.

 10. Anything especially nifty or extremely effective about the technology available at the site? 

             There is a feature called map, which shows a map of the world, and allows you to see where the iReports are coming from, as well as iReporters.  This display of news, is a cool feature, which may attract users.

11. How about any features of the site that work really really well?

             The iReport toolkit is a handy feature that presents amateur writers, photographers, video makers and people who wish to record audio files with guidelines on how to do their job efficiently and effectively.  The list on the front page of the site, which categorizes posts under latest, highest rated, most viewed, most commented, most shared, on CNN and newsiest gives its members easy access to find specific posts.  The “newsiest” link, especially, works well on the site as it brings its users to posts that are fresh and popular. Users of iReport.com who are active members of the community, contribute posts, and earn high ratings, receive the title “superstar” if they score in the top 20 percent every week in each of these categories.  This feature works very well for it provides its users with an incentive to be proactive on the site.  

12. What do the ireport.com community standards say?

             The iReport community standards say that the views and content on the site are in the hands of contributors, not CNN.  Every member of iReport.com must be no younger than 13 years old.  Although iReport.com offers eclectic posts, its news usually focuses on current events or new information learned about a past issue. This site is primarily utilized to post videos, photos or texts.  If members making posts believe their material may be viewed as gruesome to other members, they should mark the discretion advised checkbox and a warning will be posted on its page.  The use of pornography, obscene/lewd content, and content of a violent, dangerous, illegal, predatory, or racial nature are not tolerated on iReport.com and if more than three postings by an individual member are taken down, his/her account will be disabled.  Every member must adhere to these rules and be on the lookout for any violation of this rule for if spotted, he/she must click on the report violation link.

(http://www.ireport.com/guidelines.jspa)

 13. How active would you say the users are in communally enforcing those standards?

      “So we’re asking you to help.”  In September of 2008, the professional staff at iReport.com posted a blog concerning a user who was attaching links to inappropriate Web sites, which went against Community Guidelines.  Because a blog was posted asking its users to utilize the Report Violation button if they come across inappropriate content, it’s evident that users are not very active in enforcing the standards.  In October, another blog was posted about “community concerns” which targeted the increase in racial comments, personal attacks and inappropriate posts on the site.  Although the staff at iReport has deactivated the accounts of members found guilty of violating community guidelines, they continue to ask members to be on the lookout for such violations and to review the site’s Community Guidelines and Terms of Use.

14. Divison of labor:  What work does the ireport professional staff do to make the site “go?”

      “iReport. Unedited. Unfiltered. News.”  This is the headline of iReport.com and holds true, to an extent. The professional staff only overlooks posts when flagged, monitors the site and has the power to step in and make any necessary modifications.  The professional staff at iReport holds a prominent, yet back-seat role on the site.  Although the members post photos, videos or audio files, the iReport professional staff post the actual blogs.  The staff also creates prompts in the assignment desk to push what stories are wanted (as well as what has a better chance of making it on CNN). 

15. As distinct from… What work does the user community do that makes the site go?

      The user community is the heart of iReport.com.  Each member is responsible for sending in videos, photos, audio files.  The members of this community are given a voice through their posts and comments that give life to the site.  By continually adding posts to the site, the users allow iReport to run smoothly and well. The users participate and follow the news, which is evident with “a 176 percent rise in photo and video contributions since the same time last year” (http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,1834490,00.html).

16. What kind of reputation system is there for contributors to the site?

      The contributors to this site are a diverse group of people, ranging in age, gender, marital status, occupation and residence.  This site is not geared toward a specific person, which lends itself to the assortment of its contributors.  For this reason, it has a reputation of containing posts that vary from serious issues, to moderate to comedic, light ones.  The contributors are known to be quick and at the forefront of news.  In a blog posted in October called Ahead of the Curve, the professional writers at iReport commented on how two iReporters posted a story and sent in a video regarding Obama’s encounter with “Joe the Plumber.”  Although this story was picked up by many blogs and news reports, it was two iReporters who first commented on the encounter. 

However, a post stating that Steve Jobs was rushed to the hospital after suffering from a severe heart attack, damaged the contributors’ reputation.  The post was removed, and was claimed by iReport staff to never have been verified.  The controversy that followed was intense, with several blogs and newsources commenting on the “problem” with this new media, saying this was the first “failure” of citizen journalism.

17. What other mechanisms are there for creating trust at the site and how do they work?

      To establish trust at the site, the creators of iReport.com have established a “Terms of Use” which they expect each member to read and abide by.  On the first page of the site, it is written that posts are not edited, fact-checked, or screened before they are posted.  The professional staff at iReport does review the posts and deletes, modifies or changes any that they feel requires them to take such action.

18. What do you think binds the user community together?

             Every member is given the opportunity to create a personalized profile for others to learn about the person he/she is.  The professional staff at iReport.com continually holds contests to engage the members of this site into the community.  About three months ago, iReport.com held a contest that asked members to send in the most creative, meaningful commercial about the 2008 campaign, which was voted on users of the site.  By holding such contests, the iReport staff joins the community together.  The map feature on the site brings the user community closer together for it allows members to see exactly where other iReporters and posts are coming from.  iReport doesn’t only allow contributors to submit their news, but also to react to other contributors news—it lends itself to conversations, that help to bind the community.

 19. Why do you think people come back to ireport.com? What are they getting by returning?

             iReport draws people back because it is an up-to-date and broad site.  It does not have one major focus as it does not have one concrete definition of news.  The members decide what they deem as newsworthy by giving posts high ratings, leaving comments for or against posts or sharing posts with others.  People enjoy this freedom because it allows them to tell stories, through videos, photos or texts without having to worry if it is actually newsworthy.  As long as the community guidelines are abided by, all news is welcomed by iReport.com.  With such a friendly, open atmosphere, who wouldn’t revisit this site?  People are also intrigued by the potential moment of fame they can receive if their post is picked up by CNN and shown on their program. 

 20. Finally, is the community at ireport.com capable of doing actual journalism?

 At the 2008 Knight-Batten Awards for Innovations in Journalism, iReport.com received honorable mention for innovative online journalism.  Some of the most distinguished people in the media industry recognized this site for its ability to create actual journalism.  Four iReporters—Maggie Dowling, Kevin Neugebauer, Katy Brown and Zennie Abraham—went live in-studio with Roland Martin on his CNN special, “What They Didn’t Say…in the Debate.”  These people were chosen by the iReport videos they posted regarding one of the debates between Obama and McCain. These four iReporters represent the iReport community as a community with the ability to create journalism.  Superstar iReporters are aggressive and are not hindered by the fact that they do not have a degree in journalism.  iReports have been posted on the site of iReporters interviewing Sarah Palin or interviewing people during Obama and McCain rallies.  iReporters, like any reporter, are capable of being at the forefront of news and carrying out the same tasks of a journalist. 

21. Is it capable of doing great journalism?

            iReport.com is not capable of doing great journalism because it does not have its own established identity. It is associated with CNN.com and in a sense, works underneath it.  The members of iReport.com are not able to write the actual blogs and thus they cannot take part in this aspect of journalism.  iReport.com needs to build up itself up and be recognized as separate from CNN.com before it will be capable of doing great journalism.

What is NowPublic and what is its reason for living, what’s it there for?

NowPublic is a blogging community that is significantly more contemporary in the technological sense and has a stronger sense of community than other communities. It was created with the goal of advancing citizen journalism, allowing the power of the media and the witnessing of international events to be given to the masses.

Who was it founded by and what was the idea at the start?
NowPublic was founded by Michael Tippett, Leonard Brody, and Michael Meyers in 2005 and is based in Vancouver, Canada. Their intention was to create an army of worldwide citizen reporters to cover news events in a new way, while enhancing traditional media, not fighting it.

Who owns it now and how is it organized, business-wise?
NowPublic Technologies, Inc., a participatory news network, owns and operates NowPublic. Their CEO Leonard Brody has been quoted saying the NowPublic team is “building a billion-dollar company” as they receive financing form venture capital groups. Closing a deal in 2007, NowPublic received $10.6 million dollars in investments after turning down offers to sell the company outright.

What’s the business model, as far as you can determine?
VentureBeat describes that NowPublic’s business model involves licensing submitted content to news organizations such as Associated Press. It also does not give payment for its contributors.

Who is the target audience, in the old fashioned sense: the likely consumer of the site’s content?

The likely consumers are people eager to hear the latest international news in a different way from mainstream media, with interesting forms of media through photos, videos, and first hand witness stories. If a blogger wants an active community that is definitely considered to be LIVE, NowPublic has established that.

What can users do at NowPublic? what are their powers, so to speak?

Users create a profile with their picture and basic information that allows other users to message and contact them. Anyone has the ability to submit a story, photograph, or video once they join the community. Users are then able to comment on other stories, rank other stories, and contribute photographs or videos to other users’ stories.

Who are the ideal users of the site, the ones NowPublic is truly made for?

The ideal users are the ones who actually participate in the community by contributing stories themselves and instigating discussions on others’.

What do the most active users–the power users, the super-contributors- tend to do at the site?

There are editors for each topical section of NowPublic who observe what is happening in their section and ensure that the latest headlines are always up to date in their area, in case a user does not mention a news story soon enough. Users are also able to gain higher ranking and become what is considered a super-contributor by a combination of factors including the input of numerous stories, comments, photos, videos, front page stories, and stories that are ranked well. Other users respect these contributors as more credible and knowledgeable than others.

How does that differ from what more casual users would do?

More casual users either simply read the stories, give an occasional contribution when they find something particularly interesting to write about, or they just comment on other users’ stories to participate in the community.

Anything especially nifty or extremely effective about the technology available at the site?

NowPublic truly grasps the power of the cellular resource by allowing people to send in stories via text message or even a phone call message from the scene of an incident which is converted to a story on the site. There is also a unique highlighting tool which a user utilizes to pull quotes from a news article elsewhere online and incorporate it into their NowPublic post. NowPublic automatically cites the source and this tool adds credibility to any article written.

How about any features of the site that work really really well?
The front page features a mini slideshow of new photographs which have been added to stories. This visual eye catcher is very effective at drawing attention to stories that have just been written and linking to them as well. In general, the layout of the site is aesthetic, contemporary, and extremely convenient and simple to use which has great appeal to new and inexperienced bloggers or those who are not technologically talented. Users are also able to constantly update their story; revisiting and editing allows for a unique experience of live journalism.

What do the NowPublic community standards say?
NowPublic members are not allowed to deliberately obscure vested interests, plagiarize the work of others, abuse or threaten other NowPublic members or staff, post libelous or obscene material, deliberately post false or misleading stories, or break the law to pursue a story. Contributors are expected to take responsibility and follow up stories, be fair, promote interactivity, and respect the community.

How active would you say the users are in communally enforcing those standards?
Users will leave comments if they believe a story is too biased, encouraging the contributor to place an “opinion” tag on the story. Other comments will advise stories to use the highlight tool so that the work of other writers is not stolen. The established editors of each section also look out for material that is unacceptable by these standards.

Divison of labor:  What work does the NowPublic professional staff do to make the site “go?”
Editors of each section ensure that the latest headlines of the news are written about on NowPublic. They are also active in monitoring other users’ contributions and keep the community moving by marking stories as favorites. The team of NowPublic and their consulters are always brainstorming ways to keep the site contemporary and unique from other communities, as well as constantly advancing and updating technology.

As distinct from… What work does the user community do that makes the site go?
Users help the community by interacting on each others’ posts, advising revising of incorrect information, encouraging the use of further technology to advance a post, and messaging each other with recommendations for stories if they admire a certain writer.

What kind of reputation system is there for contributors to the site?
Users are also able to gain higher ranking and become what is considered a super-contributor by a combination of factors including the input of numerous stories, comments, photos, videos, front page stories, and stories that are ranked well. Other users respect these contributors as more credible and knowledgeable than others. Users also have the power to mark others’ as their “favorites”, which also increases ranking.
What other mechanisms are there for creating trust at the site and how do they work?

The highlight tool ensures that when ideas or quotes are taken from other sites or mainstream articles, they are not plagiarized; they are cited and recognized. The ranking system lets users know to a certain extent which contributors are thought of as most credible and trustworthy. The entire sense of community creates an environment of trust as high standards are set.

What do you think binds the user community together?

Although users feel comfortable enough to express their conflicting opinions and interact through arguments, they also constructively build on each other’s stories and comments. There are never extremely controversial or offensive conversations, most individuals have pressure to follow community standards. Because users are allowed to contribute photographs and videos to others’ stories, the interaction between users is tightened even further as well.

Why do you think people come back to NowPublic? What are they getting by returning?

NowPublic is an encouraging and strong community that follows high standards and utilizes a large variety of technology to create some of the best stories to come out of citizen journalism. There were more journalists through NowPublic writing about the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina than all the mainstream media corporations combined. Although they do not have the incentive of being featured on CNN, like iReport offers, users participate in the NowPublic community for the thrill and enjoyment of being a citizen journalist, as well as the great interaction of users.

Finally, is the community at NowPublic capable of doing actual journalism?

Absolutely. Mentioned already, in situations like Hurricane Katrina, the Virginia Tech shootings, and many other events, the NowPublic community was at the front end of creating headlines and not just on the web. The sense of power users have to create quality journalism and respect that ability they are given. There are so many forms of media for capturing the news on NowPublic that all users are open to act on their inspiration for stories.

Is it capable of doing great journalism?

NowPublic is a popular and rapidly growing community because it has proved itself as a trustworthy and participatory blogging site. It is certainly capable of doing great journalism because it provides huge opportunity for users and considered extremely effective with a great web reputation. People are beginning to realize that instead of stopping and witnessing an event and waiting for it to appear on television or in the newspaper, they are now comfortable enough to create their own news because of sites like NowPublic.

Squished by rather large men on both sides, I sit perched on the gleaming red steps of the rather elegant and exciting election viewing party held at Time’s Square on November 4, 2008. Hundreds of people—the majority of whom are NYU students like myself—sit on the steps anticipating the decision: Obama or McCain? Thoughts upon thoughts buzz through my mind, the most emergent being my utter desire to share this exciting, historical moment in New York City with as many people as I can.

Upon returning home from the viewing party, I decided to write a post on Now Public, not thinking much of it, and immediately began getting responses. Shortly thereafter, I went to Union Square Park to see the wonderful chaos after Obama had won, and decided to post an update to the article with photographs my friend had taken. Throughout the night, my article got more and more views and recommendations, eventually reaching the front page. I was shocked that a newbie to the blogging world such as myself could have found a niche so quick. I began to get thousands of views and several comments, and eventually corresponded with one of the editors about my post. Now Public is proof that anyone with the slightest bit of determination and dedication can be successful in the blogging world.

Now Public is a “tech savvy” site and very easy to use, and therefore I’ve created a “How To” guide so that everyone can take just as much advantage of the “crowd-powered” site as I did.

How To Use Now Public:

1. The site has a prominent tool called “Member Ranking” in which members get points for various actions, some of which don’t even involve writing articles (such as giving recommendations, commenting on stories, having a profile picture etc.). Members should make accounts right away even if they don’t plan on writing articles immediately, because they can boost their member ranking. Member Ranking

2. Now Public allows members to post written articles, photographs, videos, or highlight information from other websites. In order to write, for example, you simply open you account and click on the “write” tool under Make News. Once there, you can write a headline, write a story, add photos if desired, choose the category your article belongs in and add “tags” which are keywords that relate to the article. After the article is finished, you simply hit “publish” and the article appears on the “recently added” section of the category it is in. Story

3. One reason Now Public is described as “crowd-powered” media is because a member can add media—such as photographs or videos—to someone else’s article. Once a member’s ranking is high enough, he or she can add media to any story they choose. Upload Media

4. The highlighting tool is also very dominant on the website, as it allows a member to link other stories from Now Public or any site on the web that he or she feels is relevant to their article. Highlight

5. One last feature that is very helpful is The Newsroom, in which there is a list of FAQS, the possible tools of the website, and information to help solve any problem.  The Newsroom

]]> http://nyublueplate.wordpress.com/2008/12/08/nowpublic/feed/ 0 Mazza First Hand Source http://nyublueplate.wordpress.com/2008/12/03/open-salon-is-open-for-business/ http://nyublueplate.wordpress.com/2008/12/03/open-salon-is-open-for-business/#comments Wed, 03 Dec 2008 23:19:22 +0000 mazzafhs http://nyublueplate.wordpress.com/?p=3 ]]> Salon.com was one of the first online-only magazines, and now they hope that their user-generated (and tip-friendly!) Open Salon will become the latest darling of the blogosphere.

What is Open Salon, what is its reason for living, why is it there?

Open Salon is a hybrid of a blog and a social network. It exists to provide an outlet for bloggers who want to interact within a community of other bloggers and have their work seen and evaluated by this group. Additional motivation to join results from the fact that the editors of the parent site, Salon Magazine, may select outstanding posts from Open Salon to be featured on the widely-visited Salon.com. The focus of Open Salon is simply writing – it is not a personal blog or a news blog, per se, but a combination of both.

Who was it founded by and what was the idea at the start?

Open Salon was founded by Salon.com, often just called Salon, which was one of the first online magazines, with content updated every weekday. Its major focus is U.S. liberal politics, but it covers a range of issues. Open Salon grew out of a desire to extend the reaches of Salon, allowing its sophisticated readers to interact with each other and with the magazine. Salon saw the need to modernize and participate in the blogosphere and social networks; thus Open Salon is a combination of these two components of the cyberworld. It began as beta test, where over 1,300 bloggers were invited to build a hosted blog network. Open Salon expanded its launch to the greater public on August 11, 2008.

Who owns it now and how is it organized, business-wise?

Open Salon is directly linked to its corporate parent, Salon Media Group. The New York-based director of Open Salon, Kerry Lauerman, was previously an “editor in various capacities” at San Francisco-based Salon Magazine. All other corporate officials are based at Salon (such as Editor in Chief Joan Walsh and CEO Elizabeth Hambrecht).

What’s the business model, as far as you can determine?

Open Salon is still owned by Salon Magazine, but it does not appear to be a major profit generator at this point. Membership is free, and pages do not include advertising. It seems to be more of a service for Salon readers, though it is also designed to attract new members into the Salon fold: Open Salon advertises on television with its slogan, “You make the headlines.” The only component of Open Salon that features money is the tipping system, in which a user can tip another user in approval of his or her work. The system is operated by PayPal competitor Revolution MoneyExchange. It appears that Open Salon itself does not generate income, but serves as an extension of the Salon brand.

Who is the target audience, in the old fashioned sense: the likely consumer of the site’s content?

Open Salon’s ideal demographic skews toward the liberal side, and includes intellectuals with a passion for writing. Many of these users have come to appreciate the work done by professional journalists on Salon, and seek to emulate some aspects of this in the context of blogging on Open Salon – or at least reading the posts on Open Salon.

What can users do at open.salon.com? What are their powers, so to speak?

Because Open Salon is “part blogging platform, part social network,” users at the site can simply sign up for a free membership to create an in-site blog and be provided with a built-in audience for their work. Open Salon is accommodating to those who are already established bloggers, by allowing them to create and name their own basic blog page – complete with a photograph, blogroll, and archive of posts – within the context of the site. Posts have no minimum or maximum length. The social networking aspect of the site includes the user’s optional ability to add friends, and rate, comment, and tip others’ posts. Users simply declare their friendship with other users, though unlike social networking site facebook, adding a friend on Open Salon does not require a mutual agreement from both parties. Each action users perform is listed minute-by-minute for all to see in the “activity feed,” modeled after facebook’s “news feed.” Ultimately, their powers as bloggers can extend beyond the Open Salon community, as many are driven by the incentive to have their posts featured on Salon.

Who are the ideal users of the site, the ones Open Salon is truly made for?

The target audience is readers and enthusiasts from Salon.com who want to extend their participation with the site into the realm of blogging. These readers are generally well-educated, sophisticated, and politically moderate-to-liberal. Many are amateur or professional writers who may also hope to have their work presented on Salon.com, as some of the highest-rated posts on Open Salon may be chosen by editors to be featured on the parent website. The site’s function as a blogging platform attracts experienced bloggers, who utilize Open Salon as an extension of their personal blogs. These internet-savvy users may not have been previously familiar with Salon, but are exposed to it and welcomed into the brand through Open Salon.

What do the most active users–the power users, the super-contributors- tend to do at the site?

These users tend to be the most prolific writers, responding to the daily “Open Call” section or current events in order to stay relevant. This makes their posts more likely to be selected by the editors for placement on the “cover” page, and thus read by more users. In addition to writing, super-contributors frequently rate, comment, and tip on other writers’ posts, allowing their names to appear consistently on the activity feed.

How does that differ from what more casual users would do?

Besides the non-members who simply read posts on the site, casual members may write an occasional post that tends to be more relevant to their personal lives than to the Open Call or current events. Their participation in others’ posts through comments, ratings, and tips is limited.

Anything especially nifty or extremely effective about the technology available at the site?

The tipping system is perhaps one of the more unique features of the site, as it experiments with the idea of optional generosity within a community. Because the site was only launched in August 2008, it is not entirely clear as to how effective the tipping system is on the site.

How about any features of the site that work really really well?

Interestingly, though perhaps controversially, the presence of editors seems to enhance the quality of the site. Because the editors select the most outstanding pieces to feature on the main page, the attention is drawn to these posts, and thus the focus of the site is the highest-quality material.

What do the Open Salon community standards say?

Open Salon does not seem to specifically list community standards at this time; the sophisticated users of the site seem to coexist relatively well without emphasizing such standards. However, one user claims that he was a victim of “cyber harassment” on Open Salon, and calls for the site to re-evaluate its community standards.

How active would you say the users are in communally enforcing those standards?

Open Salon is primarily populated by well-educated intellectual writers; the tone of posts and comments seems to indicate a desire to encourage debate and discussion, without inciting conflict. Open Salon users expect to maintain a sense of class that avoids many of the pitfalls of participation on an optionally-anonymous online community.

Divison of labor:  What work does the Open Salon professional staff do to make the site “go?”

Interestingly, though perhaps controversially, the presence of editors seems to enhance the quality of the site. Because the editors select the most outstanding pieces to feature on the main page, the attention is drawn to these posts, and thus the focus of the site is the highest-quality material. Users comment, rate, and tip these posts most. In addition, the staff poses the daily Open Call question to stimulate the creation of posts. Overall, the editor-generated daily fresh “cover” page and Open Call feature provide the impetus for user generation.

As distinct from… What work does the user community do that makes the site go?

Open Salon provides a much-needed midway point between “mainstream media” and blogging. By clearly linking itself with the Salon and establishing an appearance in the parent magazine as an aspirational point for Open Salon users, the site maintains the legitimacy of “mainstream media” in the blogosphere. In this way, the setup of Open Salon mirrors that of iReport, in which users participate on the site with the goal of having their content appear on CNN. Yet Open Salon also asserts its role as a community of bloggers, who connect with each other horizontally through friends, comments, ratings, and tips. The content of Open Salon also reflects variety of the blogosphere, ranging from hard news and current events to personal stories and random ruminations.

What kind of reputation system is there for contributors to the site?

Post ratings provide an opportunity for users to evaluate each other’s content. But notably, Open Salon only allows users to submit a positive rating of a post (through the “thumbs up” feature). However, there is a “flag” feature that notifies editors of a user who is in some way inconsistent with the reputation standards of the site.

What other mechanisms are there for creating trust at the site and how do they work?

The “add a friend” feature links users to each other and establishes a sense of community and trust. Friends can also send each other private messages and extend their interactions beyond Open Salon.

What do you think binds the user community together?

The Open Salon community seems to be bound together by this desire: to participate in a venue for intellectual discussion on a wide range of topics. Due to the site’s inherent connection to Salon, users who appreciate the parent magazine find others who also fit this demographic. It is easy to become invested in Open Salon: users can easily become friends, comment, rate, and tip, and this horizontal structure is conducive to building a community.

Why do you think people come back to Open Salon? What are they getting by returning?

People return to Open Salon because it allows users to be their independent blogger selves, but with a stronger connection to each other and to “mainstream media.” They seem united in building a more erudite and meaningful version of facebook – with the possibility of making money and being featured on the web site of a widely-read magazine!

Finally, is the community at Open Salon capable of doing actual journalism?

Because Open Salon is at its heart a community of writers, many of whom focus on current events and aspire to be featured in Salon Magazine, there is potential to do actual journalism. In fact, many Open Salon users describe themselves as journalists in their brief profiles. However, Open Salon operates much like its parent in its magazine format, creating a mix of primarily news analysis and personal stories. Thus the more casual, opinion-friendly and discussion-based nature of the site is not as conducive to objective reporting or breaking news.

Is it capable of doing great journalism?

Open Salon users seem to have a knack for finding compelling stories, whether they are based on personal experience or current events, and tend to be more educated and experienced as writers. This combination has the potential for excellent magazine-style journalism. But at this point the blogging community of Open Salon is ultimately secondary to its parent magazine; the very best journalism is brought to the larger, more respected, and widely-read venue of Salon.

]]> http://nyublueplate.wordpress.com/2008/12/03/open-salon-is-open-for-business/feed/ 0 Mazza First Hand Source http://nyublueplate.wordpress.com/2008/12/03/hello-world/ http://nyublueplate.wordpress.com/2008/12/03/hello-world/#comments Wed, 03 Dec 2008 22:57:58 +0000 mazzafhs ]]> Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!