links for 2011-04-18

Formalized link sharing and cross-posting provides measurable, quantitative benefits to everyone involved.

Community does not need newspapers partly because there are alternatives from the old wish wives gossiping to social media and beyond. Partly because local newspapers are so different and their role is so diverse that you couldn’t really identify what its core purpose is. Finally, what is a community and how big a geography does it cover? IS it even bound by geography?

Want to help save journalism? Do you really want to help save original reporting, by getting more money in the hands of reporters who need it?

Start reading more independent news sites – publications run by journalist/entrepreneurs, where the ad revenue (or foundation grant) goes to the reporters running the shop. Spend less time with traditional, corporate-owned media, where the money increasingly goes to wealthy executives.

Look out for yourself, too. Keep building your connections with your own community, including friends, neighbors, sources and business people. Build your reputation as an authoritative voice so that when the day comes you're no longer able, or willing, to work in the corporate world, you will have the personal network that can help support your reporting – whether you end up launching your own publication, or writing for another, smaller publication where you can retain more of the value of your work.

For a web site to fulfil its potential, at least as much time and resources must be devoted to promotion as to the editorial package