KSTP to launch hyperlocal network in Minneapolis

KSTP (ABC) in Minneapolis-St. Paul is launching a network of 80 – 90 hyperlocal sites in the region. KSTP, owned by Hubbard Broadcasting, is going to use the DataSphere technology – the same platform that powers the KOMO hyperlocals in Seattle. Paul Gaulke, creative services director of KSTP, tells MinnPost:
“A lot of the news that [...]

Notes: ProPublica, CNC, WaPo’s $1.99 app

A “reporting recipe” to dig up dirt like ProPublica (Nieman)
Chicago News Cooperative has some impressive talent (AJR via Romanesko)
Index pegs Facebook at $11.5B, Twitter at $1.4B, LR at 2.2 B(eers) (BizJournals)
A year of the WaPo for $1.99? Gotta admit, that sounds reasonable. (PaidContent)
And, to go with this week’s theme of hyperlocal alcohol, enjoy a hyperlocal [...]

Raycom to add neighborhood sites

Add Raycom to the growing list of companies partnering with DataSphere on neighborhood blog sites. In a press release, the company announced it will launch local sites in 35 towns and cities, using DataSphere’s LocalNet service. DataSphere is hot right now, having raised almost $11 million in funding recently.
Raycom, which owns 46 television stations, [...]

Notes: Patch’s bucks, Twitter local, hyperlocal hooch

Also noted: The Bruins haven’t won a home game since they played at Fenway Park on New Year’s Day. Freaky.

AOL is pouring $50 million into Patch, its hyperlocal effort. (WaPo/TechCrunch)
Twitter adding improved geo-location. (Fast Company)
Teens Into Social Media, Not Newspapers (More insightful than it sounds) (Mediaweek)
Murdoch: WSJ’s New York metro edition to take on Times, [...]

92% in US use multiple platforms to get news

We are a multi-platform nation. That’s the finding from Pew Internet & American Life’s latest survey, “Understanding the Participatory News Consumer.” The study finds that 92% of people in the U.S. get their information from multiple platforms on a given day. Maybe even more amazing – 46% get their info from four to six platforms [...]

San Francisco’s BayNewser shuts down

MediaBistro is shutting down its San Francisco site, BayNewser. The site, which primarily covered local media matters, was just nine months old. In a post on BayNewser, MediaBistro writes:
“We just wanted to let you know that we are putting BayNewser.com on hold, but mediabistro’s commitment to San Francisco and Silicon Valley continues with the recent [...]

The Hyperlocal-Local-Niche debate: a follow-up

Yesterday, I posted what I thought was a fairly non-controversial entry on what the LR editorial differences are between the words “Hyperlocal,” “Local” and “Niche.” Today, I have a longer form article about the topic over at the RTDNA site. What surprised me was how many comments and opinions the entry received. The debate has [...]

What you need to know about location-based services

Location-based services (LBS) still represent a wide open business opportunity, but will merely be a key feature for solid business models and be fully taken for granted in a few years. Those were some of the key takeaways from last night’s forum on LBS sponsored by the Northwest Entrepreneurial Network and held at Seattle University.
The [...]

Definitions: ‘local’ vs ‘hyperlocal’ vs ‘niche’

There is a difference between the terms “local,” “hyperlocal” and “niche” and I want to outline our editorial policy regarding the three. We see the three used interchangeably some times, and I think it’s important we all recognize the differences. “Hyperlocal” covers neighborhoods, while “local” covers towns and cities. We get some press releases here [...]

NYTimes, NYU to launch new hyperlocal site

Earlier this year, NYTimes.com partnered with City University of New York (CUNY) to power a local site in Brooklyn, serving Fort Greene and Clinton Hill residents. Today, the Times announced a partnership with New York University to launch a hyperlocal site in the East Village. The Local East Village site will be developed by NYU’s journalism faculty and students, and it’s scheduled to launch later this fall. The project will tie into a new class, “The Hyperlocal Newsroom,” which in part will help teach students how to contribute. More details in the press release, which follows below…

KLAS-TV to roll out hyperlocal network in Las Vegas

The Las Vegas CBS affiliate has inked a deal with Datasphere to launch a network of neighborhood news sites in the Las Vegas area. KLAS and its website LasVegasNow.com is one of the first to employ Datasphere’s LocalNet product outside of Fisher Broadcasting, which is an investor in the hyperlocal platform company. Datasphere has launched 160 neighborhood sites to date, providing technology and sales infrastructure to go along with coverage from the TV stations. Click below for the press release…

‘Nashville is Talking’ no more

Nashville is Talking, one of the earliest (if not the earliest) examples of a station partnering with its local blogosphere, has closed down. The site was started in 2005, when WKRN’s then-General Manager Mike Sechrist hired local blogger Brittney Gilbert to staff the original site. The move was, as near as we know, unprecedented. At [...]

Local fashion news site raises seed money

Refinery29, currently a local news site for New York fashion, has raised money so it can expand into three more cities this year. TechCrunch, which calls Refinery29 “DailyCandy meets Style.com” reports the site is also going to use the money to build an e-commerce offering to sell some of the fashions it reports on. According [...]

Fwix Enhances API to Target Hyperlocal Movement

Fwix, a startup focused on the delivery of real-time, local news, just announced an integral update to its API. The Company’s API has been modified to include a heavier focus on hyperlocal news. In aggregating the most relevant news articles and blog posts around a specific location, Fwix gives third party web publishers the opportunity [...]

Roundup: Foursquare, Associated Content and tools for finding cool stuff nearby

Need something to read today? Here are a few quick hits to keep you up to speed on all things local.

Foursquare Schmoresquare: MyTown Has Over 800,000 Users After 2 Months (Silicon Valley Insider)
Top 10 Tools for Finding Cool Stuff Nearby (Lifehacker)
Associated Content: ‘Local is a Differentiator’ (Local Onliner)

Press release 2.0: technology creates localized content

Pity the poor press release. Looked on as a lower form of wordsmithing than news writing by journalists around the globe for decades, it is now getting knocked down further on the content ladder by the blog, video and even status update and tweet.
But look closer and you’ll discover a dirty little secret of local [...]

And so it begins: I get “Buzz”ed

Because you can never participate in too many social networks… Google just hit me with Buzz, its social network that really sits on top of GMail in a fairly easy way. Setup was automatic and it immediately started me off by having me follow 30 people. Apart from the @gmail.com addresses, the choices seem to [...]

Fisher CEO wins Borrell’s Innovator of the Year

Fisher President/CEO Colleen Brown won the “Innovator of the Year” award at this week’s Borrell’s Local Online Advertising Conference in New York. Brown was noted for overseeing the launch of more than 100 hyperlocal sites and surpassing 1,000 local clients. According to Broadcasting & Cable:
“Borrell Associates CEO Gordon Borrell said the effort is notable because [...]

Outside.in announces new partnerships

Outside.in, the aggregator and distributor of hyperlocal information, today announced a bunch of new partnerships for its increasingly growing platform. In an interview this morning with Lost Remote, Outside.in CEO Mark Josephson announced the new partners:

Miami Herald
Dow Jones Local
New York Post
The Tribune Company
St Louis Post-Dispatch

In December 2009, Outside.in raised $7 million in second-round funding, [...]

Central Arkansas site setting growth records

Central Arkansas site Argenta News, a hyperlocal in North Little Rock, is crowing about its growth numbers. A post on Argenta News reports:
“Argenta News had 5,320 unique readers in January representing a 9.5% growth over December. In addition Argenta News set a record in site visits for the month with 19,500 visits and over [...]