New York, NY (May 21, 2008) – Spotted this one at AdAge today. Media companies like the Tribune Co., The NY Times and Gannett are attempting to right their sinking newspaper ships with a slew of new and innovative ideas. One item on the menu from Gannett is a local social-networking site that directs readers to local bands while simultaneously helping promote their shows. From author Jeremy Mullman:
…Michael Maness, a 12-year Gannett veteran tapped to be the company's first full-time VP-innovation and design last year, said the company is finding powerful, local applications for social networking.
One MySpace-like music site recently tested in Wilmington, Del., allows local bands to post their songs and information. Readers rate the performances, creating a buzz-meter of sorts for local music that is overlayed with performance dates for the hottest bands. Unlike MySpace's music program, in which readers all over the country generally have to seek out specific bands, the Gannett application leads readers to local bands and tells them where those bands are playing nearby. The charts also get printed in the local paper's entertainment section.
"This is something that's powered by and marketed to the paper, but it's also an incredibly rich, stand-alone, social-networking site," Mr. Maness said. The application is being rolled out in Atlanta and Cincinnati.
This is good news for a space that is still extremely viable. How many people do you see reading newspapers? Think about it. There will always be a place for hardcopy news; it may not always be in the form we are familiar with, and nowadays a newspaper is more likely to close today than open, but the need for local access to news will always exist. As people like Maness and The Tribune Company’s Lee Abrams continue to innovate, folks like underground artists will only benefit.
