All bloggers joke about the size of their following. "All three of my readers," they laugh. And, they'll tell you there are a couple hundred at most (some of whom come back 500X in a day.) It's not quite that dire, and admittedly, they're the committed, tuned in people in the community.
But if you want to be seen, the papers were the way to go, with circulations of 23,000 (Times-Standard) and 21,000 (The Journal) dwarfing the blogs, popular as blogs may be.
But that's nothing.
Take a look at Lost Coast Outpost's Facebook page 'LIKES' -
Realize that the 17,405 'LIKES' are a multiplier, every post that shows up on a news feed, when 'SHARED,' TWEETED or responded to, shows up in hundreds, thousands more pages. They even get linked on blogs. And many regular readers aren't even included in that number, the numbers are far higher.
Couple that with radio news features and blurbs, and Twitter - and you're looking at something really big. Something Humboldt County has never seen before.
It's a hybrid, alright. And it's alive, vibrant and up to the minute. It has personality, and personalities. It has become the go-to place for breaking news, and it has reliably delivered. That creates a devoted following. It's a monster.
The other papers have the ingredients, an online presence, Facebook and Twitter, but not the electricity.
So, what's it mean? Well, for one thing, the comments threads are a big part of the equation, and there are a lot of people reading them. They're a mix, typical of online dialog, they can be playful, informative, populated by the camaraderie of regulars interspersed with ardent newbies, and they can be caustic, toxic, cruel and easily manipulated to harm the reputations of people whose honor or misfortune it is to be the subject of a post.
And it means those comments cannot be ignored. They could be on blogs, with their smaller reach, but not this. It is true that those who see the comment bloom turn negative and respond in person with facts and reason are often able to quell the toxic tidal wave. And that is going to become vital. For budding politicians, for elected officials, for businesses, and again, anyone who makes it into the news. Take it seriously. Not TOO seriously, but seriously.
It also means there's an added burden on LoCo itself. Online commenters don't always demonstrate decorum, respect and responsibility. Reputations are at stake, including their own.
They've done a good job policing their threads - and the threads are often filled with details and new bits of information that flesh out a story. Arguably they are not bound by the same gravitas, and need for standards as the Times-Standard and the North-Coast Journal, which are truly still the permanent record of our time. LoCo can allow anonymous input in a way the papers really should not. But they must be mindful, not just of accuracy in stories, but some level of accuracy in the threads.
Nonetheless - it is going to be up to the people to learn how to deal with this new beast. How to deal with it from a public relations standpoint, and how to set the record straight when it needs to be set straight. To learn how to respond, and when. The how? LoCo is going to have to make accommodations for that, I think. And I think they will.
It's pretty impressive. Good work.
◼ A bit about LoCo: Hank Sims — Lost Coast Outpost finds its voice in local news
◼ UPDATE: Who has two thumbs AND 20,000 Facebook "likes"? 4/7/14
Welcome LoCo readers!
