Effective immediately, the local news report for the BDN Connection will be posted online at 4 p.m. CST each day.

Why?

As most readers already know, the source for the BDN Connection’s local and regional journalism is the print edition of the Beloit Daily News. The print edition of the paper hits the streets just before noon, and then is delivered during the day to the households of subscribers.

One of the benefits of being a paying subscriber should be getting it first. That’s not the only benefit, of course. Print edition readers receive many content features which are not carried in the online version, along with the latest advertising circulars from the biggest-name stores in the Stateline region.

Also, online users probably are aware of serious discussions at all sorts of media organizations across the country, toward development of pay platforms for news on the Internet. Several news organizations already are experimenting with paid access to their Web reports. Others have announced plans to develop what are commonly referred to as “pay walls.”

So far, the BDN Connection has not made that decision, but it’s a possibility down the road. At this time, though, the later posting is simply designed to enhance value for paying customers. Major breaking news may be posted earlier, in real-time, but the majority of the daily report will not appear until 4 p.m.

This seems a good opportunity to invite you, a devoted user of the BDN Connection, to become a subscriber to the Beloit Daily News. We’re not kidding. The print edition offers a lot of great values you are not receiving via the Web.

Call 608-364-9222 to subscribe to the print edition.

James Lileks, columnist for the Minneapolis – St. Paul Star Tribune gets it.

Last week a colleague sent me a link to a video Lileks did called “More tales from the scary front lines of flu defense.” Go watch it now, it is quite brilliant. The video is funny, clever and informative. More importantly – it was done by a newspaper.

I am excited to see news organizations moving outside their comfort zone. A few years ago this video would have been considered unprofessional for a daily newspaper. Some likely still feel that way. Still, others are willing challenge the established “newspaper norms.”

I hope more newspapers take a chance with similar spectacular results.

Last week I asked my friends on twitter and Facebook their favorite way to receive the news.   If they could choose only one – written, video or image – what would they choose.

We all know the beauty of the net is the combination of these different mediums.  Still, when asked the question, to my surprise almost everyone chose the written word (I believe “injected right into my brain” was a close second).

So what are your thoughts.  Assuming the “brain stream” is not yet perfected, what is your favorite way to receive the news online?  If for some reason you could only choose one, which would you pick and why?  What do you like and dislike? I realize the results might be a bit bias on this site, but I would still love to hear your thoughts.

Stateline Alerts is a site designed to keep you informed throughout the day when you are not near a computer.  From the site:

Stay connected to us wherever you are! With Stateline Alerts, get breaking news updates along with other area information sent to you as a text message to your wireless device….Get text messages on your mobile phone or PDA with news, weather and more from StatelineAlert.com.

Stateline Alerts provides current information to either you phone or email about sever weather, breaking news, local sports or the daily forecast.  Sign up for only what you want.

More categories will be added, so check back often.  Also, please let us know if there are any categories you would like to see in the future.

While some of the largest newspapers in the country debate the best way to proceed, the Janesville Gazette implemented their plan last week.

Editor Scott Angus announced on his blog that his paper would change their online model.  Instead of posting stories throughout the day or when the paper is delivered in the morning, GazetteXtra.com would delay posts until late afternoon to boost the value of the print edition.  From his blog:

The reason is that Web sites are not generating the revenue that newspapers hoped they would. The sites make money, but they still represent far less than 10 percent of most newspapers’ total revenues… Given that print still pays the bills, newspapers have a strong interest in retaining as many readers as possible… If you want to be in the know during the day about the most important issues in your community, you’d better read the morning Gazette. You will no longer be able to catch up at work or at home until much later in the day.

Unfortunately Angus misses the point of the web.

The reason most people I know do not read a newspaper is the information is “old.”  Most stories are  from the previous day, and people have read it elsewhere by the time a morning paper arrives.  By pushing back the stories on the web, GazetteXtra.com is effectively putting online readers two days behind on their news.

Why should readers wait for you when they can read the same stories elsewhere?

How are readers going to respond while their information is being held for ransom?  Angus’s comment — “ if you want to be in the know during the day about the most important issues in your community, you’d better read the morning Gazette,” — sounds like a threat.  What prevents readers from gaining the same information from Madison.com or BeloitDailyNews.com?  When I read this story, I immediately saw it as an opportunity for our paper.

A majority of our page views come throughout the day – during the hours the Gazette now withholds information.  Early morning and afternoon is when our online readership is at its highest.  This was a trend at other news organizations I worked at as well.  Therefore it seems the Gazette is willing to strangle its web presence with this move.

Revenue is an issue that newspapers are currently contemplating.  While I can see why the Gazette made the decision to change their web distribution, I still feel strongly they are sacrificing their future for revenue today.

What are your thoughts on the Gazette’s decision?

Beginning soon, you will see Soundslides slide shows appearing in articles on the Beloit Daily News website.

Unlike my uncle’s Florida trip, I envision BDN using this technology in two ways.  First, the combination of audio and images allows us to tell a story.  Have dialogue from a discussion with someone interesting?  Add a few pictures about the topic users hear the interview in its entirety.  Combine audio from a local concert  with pictures of the event.

Second, we can now present photos in a slide show format within articles.  These can be shown as a full-screen presentation – a limitation with our current software.

Keep an eye out for articles featuring slide shows starting soon.  In the meantime, I created one for fun to show our editorial board some of the capabilities.  You can view it below (warning – check your sound before playing, the audio might be a bit loud; it’s our first try).

What would you like to see us do with Soundslides?  Let me know your thoughts and suggestions in the comments.

Click image for artist info

More people are getting their news through social networks.  Digg, Facebook and Twitter allow the tech savvy to find stories of interest and deliver them to their friends.  Popular stories on Digg have crashed servers, an occurrence known as the “Digg effect.”  Facebook gained 100 million users since August of last year.

It’s my job to make sure Beloit Daily News does not lag behind too far in the realm of technology.

There are significant challenges newspaper websites face today.  Working within the constraints of a content management system.  Changing how those that have worked within the industry for years and decades think about the web.  Finding a way to make a profit to pay for top-notch reporting.

My blog will focus on two aspects of technology and journalism.  First, what are the trends in journalism sites around the country.  What are news organizations talking about and trying to reinvent themselves.  Second, what changes being made by the Beloit Daily News to improve their web presence and make your experience on our site more enjoyable.

You may have noticed some of the changes we have made on the web.  If you are reading this, you have discovered our new blog site.  The “Share This” link that now appears in all our stories allows you post items on your favorite social network.  Over 50 of you have stumbled across our Twitter site without  us promoting it.  Less have found us on Facebook or Myspace, but all in due time.

I would love to hear from you.  How can we improve BDN’s presence on the web?  What would you like to see on the site?  I have a ton of great ideas, but you determine if they are a success.