All things "Patchy"

So I've mentioned that I have a new job, but I haven't really explained what it entails. It won't be a big secret for long -- especially on the Web -- so it's time to fess up.

I'll be a local news editor for the new hyper-local community news site Patch.com.

Patch-what?

That would be Patch.com, a new start-up venture that began in early 2009 and is determined to take community journalism into the future. It's the quest that's eluded the journalism industry for years- how can the industry build successful business revenue from the web, since that's where the audiences are flocking to anyway. It's always been disconcerting to me that nearly 20 years after the World Wide Web made it's debut, the journalism industry is still resisting Communications' place in the new digital age. It's as if journalists would rather hold on to their increasingly obslete traditional media as the ship continues to sink. But the string quartet has been playing "Nearer my God to Thee" for awhile now...sorry had to throw in that Titanic reference.

We can't keep resisting the change. We have to embrace it. We have to keep looking to the future, not always struggling to catch up. Why? While the journalism industry struggles, people are still consuming information. They're consuming it more than ever...just in different forms than your usual print, radio or television. There's much more of a need. And when there's a demand, we must figure out how to supply it.

That's what Patch is trying to do. Part of AOL corporations, it has what most start up Web journalism sites don't have -- substantial financial backing. They've hired legions of talented journalists -- I'm honored to be included in this bunch --  to produce community-specific news Web sites. Everything that happens in your community, we're there! We have our feet on the street to bring you up-to-the minute news from local government, to sports, to local entertainment.

We recently had our company-wide conference in San Francisco (company flew us out there and shacked us up in the chic Intercontinental Hotel near Union Square). It was great networking, speaking to my colleagues and getting an idea of what to expect in my new position. I even learned new company lingo -- "patchy," meaning something hip and cool...yeah, it may take awhile before that really catches on. Plus it's always nice to have a change of scenery...expecially when it's Frisco, one of my most favorite cities!

Having been a reporter and an editor for both newspaper and magazines for several years, I'm happy to move solidly in the Web field. It's a new venture . . . who knows if Patch will be the first company to get it right, to save professional journalism from extinction, but it's a step in the right direction, and I'm proud to be a part of it.

We were in Frisco for just two days (most of the time sitting through sessions, networking and partying), but we did have some time to take a quick walk around town. BTW, I love SF's Chinatown. You must stop by the bakery on Grant and get a sesame ball while it's warm!