Sarah Glenn

Never stop exploring

People Make The Most Amazing Stories

Written By: admin - Oct• 20•11

Behind every good story, there is always an interesting person.

Recently in my work on a story about an after school program for kids on the rough side of town, I met Ann Hopkin.

Ann is a Grenada native who left the island as a young woman to chase a career in nursing. After earning her bachelor’s degree in New York and her master’s degree in Great Britain, she led the life of a nurse for many, many years.

Then, in 2002, she thought she would retire in her home country. One walk through the Limes neighborhood and Ann knew that retirement would be a farcical idea.

When she saw large groups of kids just playing in the field, she started an after school program for them. Almost 10 years later, that after school program is being run by the Significant Others (SO) Organization at St. George’s University.

As her age stretches into the mid 70s, Ann now builds houses for the homeless, give wheelchairs to the invalid and gives basic medical care to those who can’t even afford a clean meal. There is a lot of poverty in Grenada and this woman seems to want to change that.

Here is a little taste of the interesting interview I had with Ann. Just click play. Beware, the audio is on a repeat loop, so when you start hearing the same things again, click the mute button at the top left. It’s just a glitch in the Plugin.

Anne Hopkin Interview Preview
Created with oQey Gallery
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A Clickable Community

Written By: admin - Oct• 14•11

After a manic morning, I am about to zip out the door for an island tour of Grenada. I am sure there will be plenty of informative posts to follow.

However, I never forget a promise and I promised my readers yesterday that I would share a little research I uncovered on community news involvement.

Did you know that people with broadband internet feel overwhelmingly more connected to and involved with their local government? Those with dial up or slower connections aren’t as involved.

The Pew Research Center published these reports that really get my mind working on the idea of a new community news model.

Check out the research for yourself at the following links:

 

Politics is local. The Internet is global. Where do the two meet?

People Say They Need Involvement in Local Community

How People Learn About Their Local Community

I’ll be back tomorrow with a few juicy tidbits about life on the Isle of Spice!

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The People Want Print (Sometimes)

Written By: admin - Oct• 13•11

I could pour over the pages of this Pew research study for days.

While combing through I stumbled on a little nuget that made this community reporter exclaim:

Validation!

 

According to Pew, print newspapers are still how people learn about their local community. In this fun little interactive graphic, my beloved newspaper went mano-a-mano with local TV, radio, internet, word of mouth, print bulletin and “other sources” for its share of the city’s readership.

Newspapers came in first place when people wanted to know about:

  • zoning/development (17 Percent)
  • taxes (22 Percent)
  • schools (21 Percent)
  • local government (19 Percent)
  • crime (36 Percent)
  • Arts and Culture Events (25 Percent)
  •  … and community events (25 Percent)

Now, you might be asking why these little statistics validate me.

I am a strong advocate for hyperlocal news models. Always have been. Always will be.

Notice that Newspapers are only the first place people turn for information about in-depth topics.  People who want to catch breaking news overwhelmingly turn on the TV (55 percent!) The internet takes second place in the breaking news category and newspapers barely register on the charts. The same holds true for job searches and restaurant reviews.

If you are wondering how to get a print product into consumers’ hands, then you must know what they will spend money on. Newspapers have failed to realize that people won’t spend money on breaking news. Drew the Town Drunk and his fender bender escapades aren’t exactly front page material either. Before the ink is even dry, the newsy basics have already been covered by the local TV and internet avenues.

People pick up newspapers expecting the reporters to tackle the tough topics like zoning, local government, crime, taxes, schools, … do I have to repeat the whole list?

Thanks for backing me up on this one Pew Internet and American Life Project.

These small, dedicated pockets of hyperlocal readership wont make someone the next Murdoch. But they just might help people be better citizens.

How exactly will newspapers do that? Well,stay tuned. My next blog post is coming. Fresh to you tomorrow morning.

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Start the Conversation

Written By: admin - Aug• 01•11

“Lend me your ear and I will lend you my voice”

In today’s world we are faced with a cacophony of sounds. Your java-fueled journalist’s sensory organs were most likely hit with at least 10 different blips and clips of information before even clicking to this page.

Let me sum up the morning:

A quick scan of the world’s news on a few of the bigger network sites. Check.

Let’s look at my friend’s status updates for today. Scroll, peruse, done.

Somewhere near your keyboard is the iPhone or BlackBerry you have used to send quick responses to immediate e-mails. But hey, since you are at the desktop, why not check the ol’ inbox anyway. Somewhere in the background, the local news explains in serious tones the latest armed robbery. You catch about every other word.

Do I paint an accurate picture, or do I exaggerate?

So why, in the midst of this lunatic life we call modern professionalism, would you be reading this blog? I can give you three good reasons.

First, you want to hire me. If so, please see the resumé link at the top of this page and never hesitate to give me a call.

Second, you might be a curious friend, or friend of a friend, just seeing what this woman is all about.

Finally, and hopefully, you are interested in in-depth and thoughtful commentary on modern-day media both in the U.S. and across the globe. An even greater hope is that you are interested in adding your voice to the conversation on journalism’s wobbling industry.

When was the last time you participated in such a conversation? Was it a satisfying experience or were you just more upset with modern journalism than you were before?

With all of the voices bombarding us on a daily basis demanding rapid-fire responses, there is incalculable worth in sitting back, quietly sipping a cup of coffee, leafing through a newspaper and asking ourselves, “what can we do better?”

 

“It is better to read a little and ponder a lot than to read a lot and ponder a little”

Denis Parsons Burkitt

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