10 ways to meet the information needs of your community
DESCRIPTION
How do you really engage with local audiences to address their interests and needs as a web publisher?TRANSCRIPT
16 slides on mee,ng community info needs in
#Oakland Susan Mernit
April 25, 2014
@innova,ng the local news ecosystem
Oakland, California, pop. 400 K
Our independent #futureofnews Nonprofit runs 3 informa,on projects: Oakland Local Live Work Oakland Oakland Police Beat
And one economic development, youth employment project that gets local small businesses online and teaches youth about careers in tech—
Hack the Hood
Photo by Paula Wirth
90,000 people read our content monthly
28,000 follow us on social media
42% are under 35 38% iden,fy as people Of color 22% iden,fy as LGBTQ
Photo by Bonnie Chan
Readers post more than 30 stories a month, including the widely read “20 ways to not be a gentrifier”—a very hot topic in the Bay area right now
*yes, this is #occupyoakland, 2012, Photo by Bonnie Chan
Photo by Sophia Hussain for Hack the Hood
Lesson #1: Listen
Photo by Howard Dyckoff
Lesson #2: Use social media to talk to people, ask ques,ons
hbps://www.flickr.com/photos/docsearls/13934254662
Lesson #3: Use surveys and data to learn about your audiences, where they live, ages, gender.
Photo by elikah lovage
We listen and then build to solve problems.
Oakland Police Beat, launched April 2014, reports on police accountability using data journalism
Live Work Oakland, launched November 2013, reports on tech & business innova,on and tracks local start-‐up scene.
Oakland Local, community media site—general news & informa,on -‐-‐more inclusive than legacy media
Use lean start up and itera,ve development principles Always plan for sustainability-‐-‐realis,cally
Use data to know when to pivot Play to your strengths in mee,ng community needs
Be a great partner with other local community orgs— but be true to your mission and goals.
For more informa7on
Sites: Oakland Local: oaklandlocal.com Live Work Oakland: liveworkoakland.com Oakland Police Beat: oaklandpolicebeat.com Hack the Hood: hackthehood.org
Social media: @oaklandlocal @hackthehood @olpolicebeat @liveworkoakland
hbps://www.flickr.com/photos/zoarvalleyhog
Stay in touch
Susan Mernit [email protected] @susanmernit