links for 2010-08-31

Neighbortree provides free, interactive neighborhood websites to any type of residential community, including traditional neighborhoods, subdivisions, condominiums and apartment buildings. Think of it as a sort of Ning for neighborhoods.

Since this requires a hyper-local approach (we’re talking physical, not virtual communities), its business depends on developing partnerships with other companies that can execute its network model at the metro or state level. The startup says most of the angel funding will be allocated towards establishing these types of partnerships.

Dawson also predicts news will more and more be delivered via that rumormill called crowdsourcing. “Substantial parts of investigative journalism, writing and news production will be ‘crowdsourced’ to hordes of amateurs overseen by professionals,” he predicts without saying what the quality and reliability will be. Can you imagine getting your news from the people who comment on blogs?

I tend to say that I am looking at both describing and then measuring informal civic behaviours within hyperlocal communities and then more specifically looking at what the online civic spaces will look like if we want to connect them to formal democratic processes.