Local news start ups report revenue growth

My new annual survey of online local news sites offers room for optimism: More than 60 percent of the publishers responding said they increased their revenues in 2013 over 2012. Still, it’s a hard slog: Only one third reported turning a profit and nearly half reported $50,000 or less in annual revenue. I conducted the survey via my database of local news start ups at www.micheleslist.org.

Read more of my post at Knight Digital Media Center..

Block by Block

We had write ups of many of the highly practical sessions at Block by Block: Community News Summit 2012. If you’re interested in the business of highly local news, read more here. This was the third and final summit. I said a little more about the virtual future of the Block by Block – a loose network of entrepreneurial local news providers – here..

Block by Block: Community News Summit 2012

I am again the lead organizer for Block by Block, which gets under way Thursday in Chicago at Loyola University. I’m very proud of the sessions we have organized and grateful to our presenters, organizers and sponsors.

Block by Block is the annual gathering of independent online community news publishers. It will be conclude Saturday.

Reynolds Journalism Institute will live stream all general sessions here and will live stream two sessions during each breakout on Live Stream Channel 1 andLive Stream Channel 2.

You can also follow on Twitter: #bxb12 and view posts from the sessions at blockbyblock.us

Here’s the full agenda.

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Block by Block: Community News Summit 2012

General registration is open for the Block by Block summit, Sept. 13-15 in Chicago.

This is the third summit for which I’m leading up the organizing. Online community news entrepreneurs are making progress on growing their businesses and revenues, and the focus of Block by Block is to help with that. So the program will be heavily focused in those areas, including sessions on ad sales, mobile, customer relations management, partnerships, hiring and managing employees, and operating like a business. I’m excited about the line up of expert presenters and facilitators we will bring to the summit.

We also have terrific support from The Patterson Foundation, Reynolds Journalism Institute, Knight Foundation, Knight Digital Media Center, Knight News Innovation Lab, and Loyola University, where the event will be held.

Learn more about the event and register, here..