Waldo Does Hartsville

As you'll recall from Laura , Waldo has always been an early adopter of new technologies. Having made his name as a newspaper columnist, he kept one foot in the old medium as he moved into the emerging technology of radio.

So the old boy was pleased, typing furiously in his bath, to learn he's being excerpted at HDTV:

HartsvilleToday is a community gathering place so that you can share your news, your stories and your pictures with your Hartsville neighbors. It is free and was created by The Messenger and theUniversity of South Carolina School of Journalism and Mass Communications. Funding was provided by J-Lab, the Institute for Interactive Journalism. This is your site, and it puts Hartsville at the forefront of an exciting change in journalism. Now, we've avoided using that word, "journalism," a lot because, well, it gets in the way. People think you have to be somehow different to be "a journalist." And so some folks think "I can't do that." We like to call ourselves community storytellers. You don't need a journalism degree to write a good letter to your friends or have a good conversation with your family, do you? So don't worry about it. Just write. Oh sure, remember to tell us the whole story -- the who, what, when, where, why and how -- but don't worry about that "J" thing. One thing we really hope you'll do is, if you go to a movie or a play, or see a band, write a review for your friends and neighbors. From time to time we'll talk about what makes a good story, how to "link" across the Internet to bolster your stories, and how you can use things like picture phones to help tell your stories. And if you don't want to write, we have space for photos, too. Remember, a photo can be worth a thousand words! Here are a few other questions that come up: This is one of those scam sites, isn't it? No. We ask you to register with your name, phone number and e-mail. That's so if there's a question about something you write, we can contact you. After all, yours may be the first word on an important story the Messenger staff needs to follow. We also ask about your gender, your age (sorry, but no one younger than 13 is allowed to post -- it's a legal thing) and what racial or ethnic group you identify with. We also ask you what street you live on or, if that bothers you, a nearby intersection. The university folks would like to know a little bit about who puts stories and photos on the site and what parts of town they come from. But, unless the law says we have to, we will never give your personal information to anyone. We regret some people won't register, but we think in the end we'll have a better site that reflects Hartsville more accurately. What does it cost? Nothing to view or contribute. When you sign on, you get the ability to post to any of the topics and the community calendar, a place to post photos and access to an online encyclopedia about Hartsville that we're going to ask all of you to build. Imagine the history and insight it will have. The Messenger staff will also write in from time to time with news you normally wouldn't get until the paper came out. So it's a good place to check daily. I have to do this every day, right? Nope. If once a week or once a month works for you, that's fine. But don't be surprised if your neighbors want to hear more. This is an electronic version of that refrigerator door on which you have all that important stuff. When you feel like hanging something on the fridge, tell us, too. So how do I get going? Just click here to set up an account, sign up and start writing. If you have questions, contact Graham Osteen at the Messenger, 332-6545, or Doug Fisher at the University. "Citizen Journalism" is the idea that every one of us has great stories, observations and information, and that we become a richer communtiy when everyone has the chance to be heard. Traditional newspapers and broadcasters are important, but they can't do it all; they have limited staffs and limited time and space. Many worthy stories go untold. So through sites like HartsvilleToday, we get a chance to discover stories we might not otherwise know -- stories that can help us with our lives, give us new insight into where we live, or just bring smiles to our faces. Citizen journalism sites are springing up around the nation. In South Carolina, in addition to ours, there is BlufftonToday and The Columbia Record. Some sites are independent, such as Westport Now in Connecticut, while others, such asYourHub in Denver are affiliated with the local newspaper. Some, such as theBlount County Voice in Tennessee have spawned their own newspapers. If you'd like to know more: Jonathan Dube keeps a list of citizen journalism sites. It's interesting to watch it grow.