Hyperlocal journalism covers community-level events
Technically Philly has published an interesting article about “hyperlocal” news sites in Philadelphia. Because the traditional journalism industry is going through difficult times, trying to adjust to the general offline to online shift, hyperlocal reporting or blogging is increasingly taking over the streets in major US cities. The ease and accessibility of online publishing paired with the popularity of cheap digital devices and social media enables both amateur and professional journalists to cover events in a local context instead of national or global issues.
These local modern “chronicles” provide a big opportunity for small businesses. They become yet another marketing channel for local garages, fitness studios or interior designers. The physical proximity of hyper-local news site readers to local businesses creates a natural connection. I hope that here in Philadelphia neighborhood bloggers and reporters will create a new innovative way for local small business to advertise online. This will monetize their news sites and they may become a permanent fixture in our local landscape.
The online local news sites / blogs are also a great source of “citations” , so include them in your small business marketing mix.
List of Philadelphia neighborhood news sites (collected by Technicallyphilly.com)
Do you know any other local news sites from the Philadelphia metro area?
