The new arrival is Know More, and its proprietor, Denise Lockwood of Racine, focuses on Union Grove, Yorkville and Raymond. Her site is full of photo slide shows and local reporting -- and newsfeed links from the Journal Sentinel and Journal Times.
A journalist for 10 years, her most recent job was at the Kenosha News. She was laid off last October during a 20 percent newsroom reduction. Lockwood has covered news in a lot of area communities: Kenosha, West Allis, Franklin, Muskego, Cedarburg and Union Grove. She's now freelancing for Milwaukee Magazine, Southern Lakes Newspapers, Conley Publishing, and Prime Magazine (a new magazine from the Kenosha News).
After being laid off, Lockwood went to the Poynter Institute in Florida, a journalism think-tank and training center, to learn how to do multimedia reporting. "Since then," she says, "I've discovered a number of traditional smaller news organizations have been reluctant to do two things... larger enterprise reporting stories and web-based stuff. So I started my own site, but I also still have many freelance gigs actively going on.
"My old job at the Westine is actually open, but because of the economy and my availability they've decided to use me as a freelancer and I'm writing five stories a week. There are four communities and five school districts, so there's a hole there that needs to be filled. This is actually an experiment of sorts. I'm wondering if a community like Union Grove, Yorkville and Raymond can support a site like this. If so, great; if not, I have other ideas.
"My old job at the Westine is actually open, but because of the economy and my availability they've decided to use me as a freelancer and I'm writing five stories a week. There are four communities and five school districts, so there's a hole there that needs to be filled. This is actually an experiment of sorts. I'm wondering if a community like Union Grove, Yorkville and Raymond can support a site like this. If so, great; if not, I have other ideas.
"I might also start one for West Allis because I know Community Newspapers used to have 23 papers and 100 in staff, then they went to 16 papers and 50 staff and now they are three papers and 20 staff.This breaks my heart"
In an early post she laments that the discussion about newspapers' economic woes mostly revolves around their declining ad revenues. "The discussion surrounding newspapers needs to move beyond academia and industry circles because if it does not move into a community discussion, there are some very real consequences as those sources of knowledge disappear.
"What price do we pay when no one is covering local issues? ...I wonder how many other journalists have ever been the only one at the school board meeting, the plan commission meeting, the city council or the county board meeting besides the elected officials. What price will our businesses and our community member pay if we don't demand strong journalism?"
In an early post she laments that the discussion about newspapers' economic woes mostly revolves around their declining ad revenues. "The discussion surrounding newspapers needs to move beyond academia and industry circles because if it does not move into a community discussion, there are some very real consequences as those sources of knowledge disappear.
"What price do we pay when no one is covering local issues? ...I wonder how many other journalists have ever been the only one at the school board meeting, the plan commission meeting, the city council or the county board meeting besides the elected officials. What price will our businesses and our community member pay if we don't demand strong journalism?"
Pete,
ReplyDeleteNice touch promoting someone on the westend following your lead.
"I wonder how many other journalists have ever been the only one at the school board meeting, the plan commission meeting, the city council or the county board meeting besides the elected officials."
ReplyDeleteThe RJT doesn't attend the meetings in the city, they call others the following day and ask what happened!
Welcome to the news-blogosphere, Denise Lockwood and Know More. The more the merrier.
ReplyDeleteGood job with Know More, Denise. How will you take on West Allis too?
ReplyDelete