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Local Blogs and the Changing Media By Lindsey Rivait
B
logs and their dedicated authors are shaping the new wave of media and how we get our news in Windsor.
Blogs, or web logs, are websites composed of regularly updated entries. These entries are usually commentaries on the world, descriptions of events, or the presentation of graphics or video, and are an alternative source for news and information. Unlike mainstream media who report on issues, bloggers are able to do more than report—they’re able to analyze. Ed Arditti started his blog, WindsorCityBlog (http://windsorcityon.blogspot.com), three years ago when the Windsor Star refused to publish his guest column. His daughter suggested he publish it online, and now Arditti posts anything Windsor-related that interest him. While the blog is not a fulltime venture for Arditti, he does admit that it turned out to be more than he anticipated. It takes him about an hour to an hour and a half to write an article after several hours
of research. In addition to posting on his blog, Arditti sends out a mailing list which is distributed through different public relations departments at various organizations. “A public relations person will scan through the media and send to their executives all the stories that are relevant to them,” Arditti explained. Arditti has big plans for his blog, with the goal of one day turning it into an online newspaper featuring additional contributors. Discussions are encouraged through comments section after each blog post, something traditional media cannot offer. Readers, who come across Windsor blogs through word-of-mouth or search engines, play an integral part of a blog’s success. Many times readers comment to raise an issue with Arditti, but it’s not something they necessarily want published. “They will point out something or say something is right or say something is wrong and ask me to investigate it,” said Arditti. Chris Holt started ScaleDown (http://www.scaledown.ca) in June 2007 as an avenue for self-expression. “As an auto worker, I didn’t have a lot of opportunity to express my different opinions on the city and the inner-workings in the city and the way we build our communities. I started it out as an outlet for sharing these ideas with what I thought at the time was two or three readers. It steadily grew from there,” said Holt. ScaleDown promotes cultural identity, social fabric, and the economic prosperity of Windsor via open discussions and grassroots advocacy. Including Holt, the blog has four regular contributors who post about Windsor’s economy, independent retailers and manufacturers, as well as improving the liveability and walkability of the community. “We tend to get people to care and understand a little more about the municipal decisions being made that affect them and really raise the dialogue and educate people,” Holt said. In addition to the blog aspect of the website, ScaleDown offers audio and video content. Holt would like to expand on the multimedia, and says he’d like to see a ScaleDown TV in the future. “Not a lot of people want to sit down and read. That’s why we started ScaleDown radio,” said Holt. ScaleDown Radio is archived on the site, a feature Holt wants to implement for ScaleDown TV. Holt and his fellow ScaleDown writers strive to advance the dialogue on urban issues in Windsor. “Blogs in Windsor are very important because there tends to be a monopoly on different news organiza-
tions in Windsor. There’s one big daily newspaper, there’s one big television show, there’s one big radio show. From the way I feel, people believe there’s probably more out there,” explained Holt. Andrew Foot launched his site, International Metropolis (http://internationalmetropolis.com), in June 2003, switching over to a blog format in September 2005. Foot amassed a collection of local postcards and began posting early scans of the city to his site. “From there it spread to other related items, old brochures, newspaper advertisements, and current photographs,” Foot explained. International Metropolis focuses on local architecture and history, something Foot believes Windsorites should be more aware of. “Hopefully as awareness of our heritage grows, my readers can help by becoming involved at the grassroots level, by keeping the pressure on the City and Council to do a better job than has been done in years past,” Foot explained. International Metropolis has garnered a lot of positive feedback for Foot. “I love hearing from readers, as sometimes you forget there are others out there reading the site. I will get emails with questions, personal stories, and remembrances, and once in a while someone will send along some photos they would like to share and they ask me to post them. The feedback is the most rewarding part of the whole thing,” said Foot. Foot’s readers range from current Windsor residents to exWindsorites and readers in Toronto, the West Coast, and the UK. “A blog is interactive, and without my regulars all I’ve got is a one way
Looking for extra income? Are you • entrepreneurial and a self-starter? • someone that excels in customer service? • interested in helping families just like yours get out of debt and start living life? • looking for more than just a job?
Blog - (weB LOG) A blog is basically a journal that is available on the web. The activity of updating a blog is "blogging" and someone who keeps a blog is a "blogger." Blogs are typically updated daily using software that allows people with little or no technical background to update and maintain the blog. Postings on a blog are almost always arranged in chronological order with the most recent additions featured most prominently.
Matisse Enzer's Glossary of Internet Terms conversation,” said Foot, who hopes his readers come away from his blog with a deeper sense of appreciation for Windsor’s past and built heritage. Group Life and Health _________ Flexible Benefits _________ Group RRSP’s _________ Pension Plans _________ Individual Life Insurance _________ Disability Insurance _________ Retirement and Estate Planning
If you answered yes to these points, then we want to meet you.
Commitment . . . Personal Integrity . . . Enthusiasm . . . Compassion . . . & Professionalism . . . Is how we handle all our Business.
Call our office today to learn more about this exciting opportunity.
We specialize in financial services for businesses.
IT’S YOUR TIME TO DISCOVER YOUR FULL EARNING POTENTIAL! Eliminate Debt Build Wealth Live Life™
Moe Mailloux
Helen Laforet
Brian Sonne
President, EPC
Employee Benefits Marketing
Associate, CFP, CLU, CH.FC
FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC.
250 Tecumseh Rd. E., Windsor, ON N8X 2R3 519-254-6960 519-969-7160 Fax
360 Notre Dame St. · P.O. Box 730 Belle River, ON · N0R 1A0
w w w. d e b t f r e e d o m . c a
ph: (519) 728-9431 · fax: (519) 728-9433
While it is common for blogs to feature advertising to generate revenue for the blogger and the blog’s operating costs, it is not always the case. Many times, blogs are a work of passion as they are for Ed Arditti, Chris Holt, and Andrew Foot. Arditti and Holt do not accept advertising on their sites, while Foot does generate some revenue from ads, but not much. “The revenue it generates for me, between the sponsored links and the sale of my guidebook, Windsor Modern—Modern Architecture in Windsor—1940-1970, it doesn’t even begin to cover the money invested into the site to keep it running or to pay the time I’ve invested into it,” Foot said. Some Windsor bloggers have the reputation of being a “naysayer,” and receive criticism because of it. “Everywhere outside of Windsor, blogs are a legitimate form of news and entertainment. It’s only in the city of Windsor that we’ve been labelled with the term ‘naysayers’ because we question a lot of what’s going on. Everywhere else, it’s taken as a legitimate form of communications,” said Holt. Likewise, Arditti asserts his objective is to demonstrate Windsor’s potential. “We’re not naysayers. We’re pointing out the things that are wrong here and suggesting ways that they could be made better,” said Arditti. “I’m trying to show people that this area has terrific potential, we’re just not capitalizing on it. We ought to be doing more. That to me is the really sad part about what this city has. We have everything, we’re just not taking advantage of it,” Arditti continued.
It’s not just locally that Windsor blogs are being noticed. The 2007 Canadian Blog Awards, an annual competition where Canadian bloggers and blog readers vote on the best blogs, was full of Windsor content. ScaleDown won third place in the “Best New Blog” category, and International Metropolis was runner-up for “Best Local Blog,” the first place winner of which was another Windsor blog, WindsorEats.com. Blogs are definitely changing the media by forcing mainstream media to pay better attention to the community. As an example of this, Foot points to the illegal demolition of the Seagrave Building on Walker Road this past spring. “I was in a meeting of the Windsor Heritage Committee where we discussed the demolition that had started that morning on a Wednesday. The media was at our meeting but didn’t do anything with the story,” explained Foot. The following day, Foot and other local bloggers ran stories about the demolition, but there was still nothing in the newspaper. The mainstream media waited until Friday, after they learned of a vigil being held outside the Seagrave building, to report on it. Holt believes the mainstream media will be struggling to keep up with blogs. “I know the CBC, TVO, and the Windsor Star read it. Guaranteed it’s not just for entertainment, it’s to expand their news department or to get story ideas,” explained Holt. Overall, these Windsor blogs strive to change the city for the better, and to get its citizens educated and aware of what is going on and what they can do. IN
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Sq. Ft. Installed
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B
logs and their dedicated authors are shaping the new wave of media and how we get our news in Windsor.
Blogs, or web logs, are websites composed of regularly updated entries. These entries are usually commentaries on the world, descriptions of events, or the presentation of graphics or video, and are an alternative source for news and information. Unlike mainstream media who report on issues, bloggers are able to do more than report—they’re able to analyze. Ed Arditti started his blog, WindsorCityBlog (http://windsorcityon.blogspot.com), three years ago when the Windsor Star refused to publish his guest column. His daughter suggested he publish it online, and now Arditti posts anything Windsor-related that interest him. While the blog is not a fulltime venture for Arditti, he does admit that it turned out to be more than he anticipated. It takes him about an hour to an hour and a half to write an article after several hours
of research. In addition to posting on his blog, Arditti sends out a mailing list which is distributed through different public relations departments at various organizations. “A public relations person will scan through the media and send to their executives all the stories that are relevant to them,” Arditti explained. Arditti has big plans for his blog, with the goal of one day turning it into an online newspaper featuring additional contributors. Discussions are encouraged through comments section after each blog post, something traditional media cannot offer. Readers, who come across Windsor blogs through word-of-mouth or search engines, play an integral part of a blog’s success. Many times readers comment to raise an issue with Arditti, but it’s not something they necessarily want published. “They will point out something or say something is right or say something is wrong and ask me to investigate it,” said Arditti. Chris Holt started ScaleDown (http://www.scaledown.ca) in June 2007 as an avenue for self-expression. “As an auto worker, I didn’t have a lot of opportunity to express my different opinions on the city and the inner-workings in the city and the way we build our communities. I started it out as an outlet for sharing these ideas with what I thought at the time was two or three readers. It steadily grew from there,” said Holt. ScaleDown promotes cultural identity, social fabric, and the economic prosperity of Windsor via open discussions and grassroots advocacy. Including Holt, the blog has four regular contributors who post about Windsor’s economy, independent retailers and manufacturers, as well as improving the liveability and walkability of the community. “We tend to get people to care and understand a little more about the municipal decisions being made that affect them and really raise the dialogue and educate people,” Holt said. In addition to the blog aspect of the website, ScaleDown offers audio and video content. Holt would like to expand on the multimedia, and says he’d like to see a ScaleDown TV in the future. “Not a lot of people want to sit down and read. That’s why we started ScaleDown radio,” said Holt. ScaleDown Radio is archived on the site, a feature Holt wants to implement for ScaleDown TV. Holt and his fellow ScaleDown writers strive to advance the dialogue on urban issues in Windsor. “Blogs in Windsor are very important because there tends to be a monopoly on different news organiza-
tions in Windsor. There’s one big daily newspaper, there’s one big television show, there’s one big radio show. From the way I feel, people believe there’s probably more out there,” explained Holt. Andrew Foot launched his site, International Metropolis (http://internationalmetropolis.com), in June 2003, switching over to a blog format in September 2005. Foot amassed a collection of local postcards and began posting early scans of the city to his site. “From there it spread to other related items, old brochures, newspaper advertisements, and current photographs,” Foot explained. International Metropolis focuses on local architecture and history, something Foot believes Windsorites should be more aware of. “Hopefully as awareness of our heritage grows, my readers can help by becoming involved at the grassroots level, by keeping the pressure on the City and Council to do a better job than has been done in years past,” Foot explained. International Metropolis has garnered a lot of positive feedback for Foot. “I love hearing from readers, as sometimes you forget there are others out there reading the site. I will get emails with questions, personal stories, and remembrances, and once in a while someone will send along some photos they would like to share and they ask me to post them. The feedback is the most rewarding part of the whole thing,” said Foot. Foot’s readers range from current Windsor residents to exWindsorites and readers in Toronto, the West Coast, and the UK. “A blog is interactive, and without my regulars all I’ve got is a one way
Looking for extra income? Are you • entrepreneurial and a self-starter? • someone that excels in customer service? • interested in helping families just like yours get out of debt and start living life? • looking for more than just a job?
Blog - (weB LOG) A blog is basically a journal that is available on the web. The activity of updating a blog is "blogging" and someone who keeps a blog is a "blogger." Blogs are typically updated daily using software that allows people with little or no technical background to update and maintain the blog. Postings on a blog are almost always arranged in chronological order with the most recent additions featured most prominently.
Matisse Enzer's Glossary of Internet Terms conversation,” said Foot, who hopes his readers come away from his blog with a deeper sense of appreciation for Windsor’s past and built heritage. Group Life and Health _________ Flexible Benefits _________ Group RRSP’s _________ Pension Plans _________ Individual Life Insurance _________ Disability Insurance _________ Retirement and Estate Planning
If you answered yes to these points, then we want to meet you.
Commitment . . . Personal Integrity . . . Enthusiasm . . . Compassion . . . & Professionalism . . . Is how we handle all our Business.
Call our office today to learn more about this exciting opportunity.
We specialize in financial services for businesses.
IT’S YOUR TIME TO DISCOVER YOUR FULL EARNING POTENTIAL! Eliminate Debt Build Wealth Live Life™
Moe Mailloux
Helen Laforet
Brian Sonne
President, EPC
Employee Benefits Marketing
Associate, CFP, CLU, CH.FC
FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC.
250 Tecumseh Rd. E., Windsor, ON N8X 2R3 519-254-6960 519-969-7160 Fax
360 Notre Dame St. · P.O. Box 730 Belle River, ON · N0R 1A0
w w w. d e b t f r e e d o m . c a
ph: (519) 728-9431 · fax: (519) 728-9433
While it is common for blogs to feature advertising to generate revenue for the blogger and the blog’s operating costs, it is not always the case. Many times, blogs are a work of passion as they are for Ed Arditti, Chris Holt, and Andrew Foot. Arditti and Holt do not accept advertising on their sites, while Foot does generate some revenue from ads, but not much. “The revenue it generates for me, between the sponsored links and the sale of my guidebook, Windsor Modern—Modern Architecture in Windsor—1940-1970, it doesn’t even begin to cover the money invested into the site to keep it running or to pay the time I’ve invested into it,” Foot said. Some Windsor bloggers have the reputation of being a “naysayer,” and receive criticism because of it. “Everywhere outside of Windsor, blogs are a legitimate form of news and entertainment. It’s only in the city of Windsor that we’ve been labelled with the term ‘naysayers’ because we question a lot of what’s going on. Everywhere else, it’s taken as a legitimate form of communications,” said Holt. Likewise, Arditti asserts his objective is to demonstrate Windsor’s potential. “We’re not naysayers. We’re pointing out the things that are wrong here and suggesting ways that they could be made better,” said Arditti. “I’m trying to show people that this area has terrific potential, we’re just not capitalizing on it. We ought to be doing more. That to me is the really sad part about what this city has. We have everything, we’re just not taking advantage of it,” Arditti continued.
It’s not just locally that Windsor blogs are being noticed. The 2007 Canadian Blog Awards, an annual competition where Canadian bloggers and blog readers vote on the best blogs, was full of Windsor content. ScaleDown won third place in the “Best New Blog” category, and International Metropolis was runner-up for “Best Local Blog,” the first place winner of which was another Windsor blog, WindsorEats.com. Blogs are definitely changing the media by forcing mainstream media to pay better attention to the community. As an example of this, Foot points to the illegal demolition of the Seagrave Building on Walker Road this past spring. “I was in a meeting of the Windsor Heritage Committee where we discussed the demolition that had started that morning on a Wednesday. The media was at our meeting but didn’t do anything with the story,” explained Foot. The following day, Foot and other local bloggers ran stories about the demolition, but there was still nothing in the newspaper. The mainstream media waited until Friday, after they learned of a vigil being held outside the Seagrave building, to report on it. Holt believes the mainstream media will be struggling to keep up with blogs. “I know the CBC, TVO, and the Windsor Star read it. Guaranteed it’s not just for entertainment, it’s to expand their news department or to get story ideas,” explained Holt. Overall, these Windsor blogs strive to change the city for the better, and to get its citizens educated and aware of what is going on and what they can do. IN
WALKER ROAD RED TAG SALE On Now!
PEERLESS COMFORT
3 for1 $1.99 Starting at
• Carpeting • Labour • Premium Pad (8lb.)
Visit us for complete details
Sq. Ft. Installed
No Payments for 1 Year Available Visit us for complete details
HARDWOOD-CERAMIC TILE-VINYL FLOORS CARPET-WINDOW COVERINGS
Open Monday-Thursday 9-5:30, Friday 9-7, Saturday 10-3 3224 Walker Road 519-972-000 www.michaelsflooring.com 16 IN BUSINESS November 2008
