Somebody Please Send www.nostringsgeneva.com to editor@fltimes.com !

The managing editor of our local paper, Anne Schuhle, writes a weekly column, From Where I Sit. It’s where her readers get a view of a newspaper editor’s world from her perspective. This Sunday, she talked about a workshop on newspaper websites she recently attended. Naturally, the topic of blogs came up.

Schuhle was careful to explain to her readers what a blog is (“an online journal of sorts”). She noted one workshop presenter felt newspaper reporters don’t make good bloggers. Schuhle felt otherwise, and let her readers know she regularly reads blogs authored by New York Times staffers. But then she said those “are the only ones I visit regularly.”

What do Schuhle’s colleagues in journalism have to say about blogs? The New England Newspaper Association hosted a special seminar on blogs and other ‘new media’ sources. The group states that blogs are an essential part of the “marketplace of ideas.”

The Associated Press Managing Editors group hosts “National Credibility Roundtables” meant to maintain and build trust in news organizations. They have posted on their website a “Steps to Credibility” chart listing steps editors take to “improve their newspapers’ credibility.” Several points made suggest reader blogs are a valuable resource.

As a general rule of thumb, editors need to be in touch with their readership. Blogs, especially blogs with a local focus when it comes to a local newspaper, are ideally suited for that. Reader blogs generate story ideas and new content (by indicating what is of interest to the audience). Bloggers are reader advocates who provide evaluations of news coverage by either incorporating news stories into the blog content or critiquing news coverage (or lack thereof) within the blog. Feedback is critical for any learning, so blogs are good for anyone who wants to learn more about their readership.

Schuhle admits she “normally wouldn’t bother” visiting blogs other than the New York Times. She did say, though, that she will occasionally visit one when she is sent a link. So, would someone please send the editor a link to NoStringsGeneva? You’d be doing the Finger Lakes Times’ readership a favor.