Being interviewed, mentioned in the two previous blog posts, offers a perspective on the role of social media in reporting on local community events.
In both cases I didn’t ask to be interviewed. The interviewer decided that the event was worthy of record. The local press weren’t present at either event. I feel able to draw conclusions from the experience, which updates my previous thoughts in Is social media replacing the local newspaper?, and The future of newspapers and paid-for online content.
Sadly in neither case did I ask about the motivation of the interviewer. Never mind that, here are my conclusions:
- Even though the local press offer limited coverage of local community events, a reader would need to visit very many websites to acquire the news that’s available in a single newspaper edition. So, currently in Surrey Heath local newspapers continue to a reliable source of local news, however imperfect it might be.
- Technology for interviewing is small, lightweight, affordable, and easy to use.
- The means of publishing is also easy to create, and in many cases free to use. There’s a multiplicity of platforms on which to publish, which presents challenges. However, cheap technology and publishing platforms present local news media with a realistic and strong potential challenge.
- Overall, my conclusion is if the mainstream local press and media fail to offer regular, and effective coverage of local events, however newsworthy they may be, then there’s a big opportunity for new entrants into the market. It’s simply down to any new entrant being able to build a credible alternative to the established local media.
Is it likely to happen? Yes. Will it happen soon? I can’t tell. But, what I can say is that this week I was at the opening of the new Tomlinscote Vocational Centre, and they have a studio with broadcast quality TV and radio equipment, and post production editing technology. So, it mightn’t be too long before some bright student decides to start a local news business combining local radio, TV, and social media outlets. I hope it happens, because that’ll be good for our communities.
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