Weekend read: Reporters as 'maestros'

(via Flickr: jj_pappas423)

It's the weekend, so pull up a chair and settle in for some interesting reads:

"Chapter Nine: Managing Digital" (Columbia Journalism Review): Somewhere during the course of the week, it was suggested that this chapter of the new report on digital journalism from the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism would be particularly eye-opening. And it is. Consider this evaluation of how Forbes' Lewis DVorkin assesses reporters: "He expects Forbes journalists not just to cover news, but to be 'maestros' of comments and of followers." And from DVorkin himself: "It used to be a question of how they [reporters] develop their sources. Now it's how they develop their sources and their audience." Take note, veteran journalists.

"Main Street Connect’s Tucker: Hyperlocal Needs Scale" (Street Fight): No sooner had founder Carll Tucker been interviewed about his growing network of hyperlocal news sites -- he has established 10 in Connecticut and will add 32 in Westchester County, N.Y., on June 1 -- than he added 10 more in Massachusetts with the announced acquisition of CentralMassNews. Main Street Connect has kept a relatively low profile since raising close to $4 million last year, but it apparently has been busy behind the scenes. (Tucker, by the way, believes his hyperlocal model is way better than AOL's Patch.)

Musical interlude

"Meet Facebook's Journalist Ambassador (Yes, We Said Ambassador)" (FastCompany): If DVorkin, above, is correct, reporters needing a platform from which to build a fan base may have a friend (pun intended) in Facebook. And helping them learn best practices is Vadim Lavrusik, a social media ace who just became journalism program manager at Facebook.

"Google Adds News Near You -- Newspapers Still Nowhere" (GigaOM): Here's another shout out to newspapers to get mobile fast because Google is getting ready to eat their lunch again. This time, it's with a feature that can deliver news that is "personally relevant" no matter where the reader may be. And for how long have the experts been saying the potential for mobile is huge?

Video interlude: It wasn't just the recession that cost the U.S. jobs.