The Gazette Gets Plugged
I debated whether to post about this or not and decided to do so as an encouragement to the rest of the local blogging community...and to local MSM outlets, as well.
If you happened to catch the beginning of last night's 10:00 news broadcast on KMID-TV, you saw the feature on Jennifer Taylor and her new bereavement photography ministry, I Say My Prayers. I thought it was very well done, and will be an important step in getting out the word to those who might benefit from this service.
You may or may not have noticed what came at the end of that feature -- a plug for the Gazette as the source for the story. In case you missed it...well, it seemed like a great excuse to join YouTube and see what the cool kids are doing:
While it doesn't necessarily compare with the mention that Jessica's Well got on Fox News a couple of years back, it's still an example of how the joint efforts of traditional media and bloggers can work for the benefit of the public at large. This is old hat to Jimmy Patterson at the Midland Reporter-Telegram, and Jeff McDonald has incorporated blogged material in KWES-TV's (NBC) website, but I haven't seen much on-air acknowledgment by any of the local TV stations*. KMID's news director, Mel Hudman, gets the credit for taking this step. It's not a huge thing, but I think it helps the credibility of the Permian Basin blogging community as a whole.
*If this is happening and I'm just missing it, feel free to correct my perception in the comments. That's why they're there. Well, and for you to tell me what an awesome job I'm doing.
Note: We'll have the whole news feature up on isaymyprayers.com a little later, if you missed it. And here it is (beware; it's a 6 meg QuickTime download).
I love perceptive readers who can take a hint!
Posted by: Eric at November 10, 2006 04:35 PMKudos! It's just a matter of time before the national networks take notice. Keep up the good work! :-)
Posted by: Gwynne at November 10, 2006 05:39 PMI love it when you get that kind of encouragement! I will be sure to put my Fire Ant coffee mug so everyone will get a glimpse of it.
Posted by: Gene at November 10, 2006 05:41 PMThe book deal must be right around the corner now :).
Posted by: Rach at November 10, 2006 05:48 PMEric, re: "*If this is happening and I'm just missing it, feel free to correct my perception in the comments ..."
While it's not the same as an on-air plug for your on-line product, blogs are a part of story development in television newsrooms ... just as any other source might be ... in this respect, blogs are really no different than a 'letter to the editor' or a 'man-on-the-street' comment, or a story in another part of the country that's made it onto the newswires ... it's one more source for hearing what people are saying, the questions they're asking, the answers they're suggesting and the perspectives they're bringing to the discussion ...
Hmm. So the concept of bloggers being "citizen-journalists" ends at the copydesk, if I read you right.
It seems to me that the difference between many/some bloggers and those other sources you mentioned (other than the newswires) is that bloggers are publishing for an audience, however miniscule it might be. They're putting some time and effort into developing a story, and publishing it in return for...something. May not be money (probably isn't), but there's some intrinsic value in knowing that readers' eyeballs are landing on what they write.
All that is to say that when the MSM picks up a story from a blogger and runs it as their own, without attribution, while that may seem to be akin to overhearing a comment on the street that merits follow-up and investigation, it's not going to help the relationship between the two media.
I also think the distinction between a letter to the editor and a blog post is that one is "push" and the other is "pull." That's not an insignificant difference, in my opinion.
I may have read more into your response than you intended.
Posted by: Eric at November 13, 2006 04:58 PMEric, my friend, YES, you ARE reading more into my response than I intended.
At the same time, I realize that I am treading on uncertain and unsteady ground here. But, it's difficult to establish a firm footing ... if there really is a problem with "the relationship between the two media," it is one that is exacerbated by advocates on BOTH sides of that relationship ...
Posted by: Jeff at November 13, 2006 08:27 PMAbout the publisher
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That's cool. Congratulations! I should have gotten your autograph when I was out there.
Oh, and you're doing an awesome job.
Posted by: Jim at November 10, 2006 04:33 PM