In the past short months, we’ve been introduced to the arena of web journalism. Not personal journalism (i.e. my own blog), but free-access community journalism on an intimate, local level. Our website is not just a social networking site, or just a bulletin board, or just a hub for bloggers to park their blogs. It’s all of these, and it’s somewhat of a newspaper, with breaking news, updates, opinions, public announcements by high-profile individuals and leaders of our community. This has all happened fast, and it’s great to see. (more…)
Voice the official Citizen Wausau blog
In the spirit of the Season – we are continuing to share our favorite online tools and all around geek-ness. As previously mentioned, yes – we are all fans of the little ol’ fruit company from Cupertino. You don’t need to be a hater about it, just appreciate Apple for its innovations if nothing else. In addition to Dino’s list (exception being the Blackberry mention), here’s my quick list: (more…)
NBC Universal’s new “Green is Universal” campaign kicked off yesterday (Nov. 4th) with a week of green-themed programming aimed at entertaining, informing and empowering Americans to lead greener lives. While I completely endorse their use of programming, I wonder exactly how much is corporate responsibility and how much is a marketing ploy to be seen as “environmentally aware”.
Regardless, it’s about time we as a nation step forward and do whatever we can to preserve our resources and make people aware of the options available to reduce our ecological “footprint.”
About a year ago my wife and I moved into a new home – we made it a point to replace all of the lights in our house with Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs). A rather expensive ordeal by comparison, but we spaced out the purchases over a couple of months.
We started with our most heavily used lights, the kitchen, living room and kids’ bedroom lights. Those were relatively easy choices to make. It got a bit harder once we moved into the bathrooms and dining area.
My wife likes a bright light to put on her “face,” which is understandable, but CFLs are not an accurate lighting source for applying makeup. I’d hate for her to walk out of the restroom thinking she looked fabulous – only to find out her eyeliner looks like black crayon in natural light! For shame.
The dining area was also a toss up as we like the ability to dim the lights, and CFLs won’t let you do that very well (unless one of you know something I don’t). So that’s for future upgrading as well.
Other than that, we’re about 85% transitioned to CFLs. Not bad. Also, our electricity bill went down about $20-30 a month.
We’re trying to do the same thing at Citizen Desk. During the day we’ve turned off most of the lights (fluorescent anyway, but… ), this makes for a nice working environment as we have so much natural light coming in our windows. There are four strategically placed hanging lamps that provide direct desk light if need be, also with CFLs. Finally, there’s a UV protected screen that we can pull down to block out the late afternoon sun and keep the office cooler (less reliance on the A/C).
Outside of that – we’re recycling every chance we get. I wish there were some more options, like green energy (wind or solar power), or even a sustainable housing community, but all in time.
What’s most important is that we all do our part, right? What are you guys doing to preserve our resources?
You know, this is really a bit depressing.
First it was Kelly’s. Then it was Kelly’s, only this time it was the Murdochs’ venture. Then it was Kelly’s again, but back to the old owner.
Most recently it became III. My wife and I have spent many evenings there meeting with friends, listening to music or just having a quiet drink together. It’s one of the few smoke-free establishments downtown.
So you can imagine my shock today when I strolled past III on Third today. There’s paper in the window announcing a change – again. What’s happening over there?
The rumors say that two of the three co-owners were bought out by the remaining owner, but I have no way of confirming this. Hmm… interesting development though, especially since there’s a new Chinese restaurant opening next store in the former Something’s Brewing space.
Side note: do we need another Chinese food restaurant?
They did it again – another great family event at ArtsBlock! (more…)
Last week we hosted a Launch Party for Citizen Wausau at Citizen Desk. We had a great time and the event got people talking – in fact, we were asked several times if this could be a monthly event – or at least one that happens more frequently. This got me thinking.
Why not create other opportunities to take this online community offline?
I imagine being able to host groups, clubs or individuals for organized (or unorganized) meet-ups. There was this non-profit meet-up I used to attend in San Francisco called Net Squared, where they partnered non-profs with technology. Pretty cool stuff.
A couple of weeks ago I attended a large scale meet-up called Barcamp in Milwaukee. This was an “un-conference” where anyone could participate or present. It was an amazing chance to network with other geeks in the state, reconnect with old Wausau acquaintances and make many more new ones!
Back in the RockWater days we used to have LAN parties for online gaming and that sort of thing – it was a great time!
That said, we have this space at Citizen Desk that could be perfect for these sorts of activities.
I searched on Meetup.com just to see if there is a perceived need for such space – but there does not seem to be a whole lot of people using this tool to advertise meetings happening around Wausau. I found similar results when searching Upcoming.org.
There’s just so many ways we could connect to each other in ways that this site doesn’t provide for (although I understand there are those that are fine with that). So, I’d like to put this out – what kinds of events or meet-ups could we get going to create further community?
Here’s a few suggestions I’d throw out:
- Friday night happy hours
- Writing classes
- Discussions or workshops for programmers
- Weekend hack-a-thons
- Graphic designer meet-ups or critique.
- Poker or board game nights
Possibilities are endless, really – if you were to leave the comforts of your home to attend an event, what kinds of things would you be interested in attending?
Personal note: My wife and I have a son with Cystic Fibrosis – it sure would be nice to connect with other parents who have children struggling with life threatening diseases. Just another thought.
This is a highly unusual situation, but in the interest of remaining transparent and open about our experiences we will address this publicly.
It has come to our attention that someone has begun a rumor about Citizen Wausau. The implication is that while we’re only in our second week of publication, we’re already on the censorship bandwagon. You can imagine why this is a headache.
Here’s the deal, we “rejected” one post. That person denied speaking to anyone other than us about it, but now we have an independent third party addressing us about it – and – our editor resigned.
“Why was the article rejected,” you ask? Good question.
The article technically wasn’t rejected. The article in question was three sentences, and two hyperlinks. They were great sentences, and cool links, but Dino asked the author to reconsider it (we can’t really control Dino by the way, he is totally running amok, we just throw Vegan Meatloaf at him once or twice a day, and hope he stops yelling…he yells a lot. We can’t tell if he just has a loud voice, or if he is angry.)
As our editorial policy states, “Personal voices expressing personal stories to readers in their community. You, talking to me, about what you have seen, what you want to see, and what you hope will come along.”
Dino asked the author to expound on their idea, not just post the few lines without connecting the reader to a valid emotion or idea. We all felt it was inappropriate to allow such a short post because it would set a precedent for others to feel it was alright to contribute what would slowly turn into a blog that was merely a bunch of links, of which there are already plenty.
The author chose to not pursue publishing the post. We went back, and Dino offered to amend an Editor’s note to explain the significance as to what was being posted, and why. He even went so far as to show the poster the Editor’s note in advance. The author made a choice.
For the record, we have a process where more than one person has to be involved in the approval or rejection of a post. With three founders, we think that we represent fairness the best way we can. Initially Dino reads all of it, and has initial discussions with posters, but after that he talks to Andy and I about everything on the site. We totally would not give the big loveable monkey too much rope with which to hang himself. We are in this together!
It led to some interesting discussions over the two days between the author and myself and Dino. The question of censorship, the question of what is and what is not an open forum. I tend to err on the side of trying to find inclusive paths. Dino, on the other hand, just wants the posts to be what we had envisioned…discussion. You can see from his posts he is fond of words, prosody, the brought forth idea (he worships Aaron Sorkin after all). At the same time, Dino is really Dino. A sort of acquired taste, a polarizing figure, a real rabble rouser. We’re not sure everyone is going to like him, as often we’re pretty sure that we don’t like him, but over the past few years his work in this sort of thing is pretty public and pretty successful. WNRB, his inciting the Wausaublog, and his bringing me the Citizen Wausau idea and yelling at me until I got it done.
So for all you new people we ask, if we can talk Dino into coming back, to understand that his is a different way. Not always loving and sensitive, but there is no one we would rather go to war with. Dino has proven to all of us, on more than one occasion that he would literally walk into traffic to defend us, to avenge us, to make sure that our ideas and projects are safe. We have watched Dino essentially put himself on the line for his principals and lose giant fights, and lose things he cares deeply about, but he was standing up for what he believed in, and would not really change (he’s practically a Dixie Chick in that way). Even if he has nothing at stake, he is more than willing to take a literal punch in the face, or a metaphorical boot to the side. We know that he is going to be that guy for you, because of his love for the project, and the idea of giving voice to you all.
So we’re sorry that the poster felt slighted. We never meant for it to happen. We have tried to remedy this situation, and we think by being open and honest about it with all of you, we are doing a better thing than by not being transparent. We want you to understand that the “rejection” of this post was an issue of quality(we wanted to expand your idea of the situation), not subject matter.
We’re not really sure about Dino, or his return. His feelings were really hurt by this incident, on a personal level. We heard that he went home, and rented a movie about Newfoundland, and got some Vegan food (seriously, how can a guy big like that be a vegetarian? It makes no sense) and sat in his chair. Other than that, we are hoping to hear from him, as we asked him to reconsider his resigning.
What do you think?
I know we’re just getting started here, but I thought it might be nice to introduce some ideas about this new little community of ours. Perhaps it would be important to lead off with this:
The World Is Changing.
That’s what I find so compelling about this medium of social media. As an example, check out the City Pages from last week — there’s a feature announcing this website. Yeah for us! (more…)
Dear Everyone,
Welcome Citizens! Thank you for stopping by – as you see, Citizen Wausau is alive! I wanted to take a moment, and introduce ourselves.
First off, my name is Marcus Nelson. I am a native of Wausau, having grown up on the southeast side and attended Wausau East High School. But past is prologue, and now I am a husband and father of two, back in my hometown after many trips and homes elsewhere. Wausau is a special place, a place on the cusp of something amazing, and with Citizen Wausau I want to be part of that. So I am back now – having formed a design/technology consultancy – and am proud to be home again.
Citizen Wausau has been in the making for a couple months. During this time, I have had a chance to work with my friends Andy Laub and Dino Corvino. Andy agreed to take on the role of Creative Director and Dino as the Editor for Citizen Wausau. It’s been amazing to work with these guys, both in their attitude and ability to do anything I’ve come up with… “Hey, can we make this three columns, and blah, blah, blah?” Andy always says, “Sure.” Then quietly and expertly makes it a reality. “Dino, can you rewrite this post and make me sound coherent?” And with the wave of his Powerbook, it’s completed. Both of their involvement have been hugely instrumental, and I cannot thank them enough.
I’d also like to thank Emily, my enduring wife of nine years. I’m astonished she enables me to pursue these crazy ideas. She understands my creativity, even pitching in as administrator to keep things on schedule, allowing me to pour myself into this endeavor. She’s an amazing woman – if any you men could find a nice gal with half her graces, you’d be in pretty good shape. I love you sweetheart.
So, what is Citizen Wausau?
Check out our Mission Statement for a brief overview, but to put it bluntly, it’s “citizen journalism”: the idea that everybody has a story to tell; they just need the platform to do so. Wanting to use the technology that I love so much to provide a forum for this very thing, I am really excited about what has come out of it. This idea of giving voice to every person, providing a platform, building community… it’s all right here!
Wausau is a great place, a growing place, but with growth come the challenges of balancing lots of opinions and ideas, conflict and resolution, and all the rest. We hope to be a place where everyone can wrestle with these things openly – in a civil exchange. The Internet has been a place where tempers can flare, and people have acted out in ways that would normally not be replicated in real life. We ask that as a contributor you be responsible for your words. As a commenter, we ask that you not post something that you would feel uncomfortable saying in front of your real-life colleagues; people who know you as more than just a username.
We want that free-flowing idea exchange, but we want to provide a place that is about the idea, not the personality. With that, in extreme cases we reserve the right to pull anything we feel takes away from the civility of the forum. We have an Editorial Policy, but we should all know how to be polite, disagree without being disagreeable, and move ideas around the table in a constructive way.
This is post number one, and we make no apologies for being bit rough around the edges. This means we are going to be experimenting, making mistakes, adding things, and taking things away. Our focus will always remain on the contributions of our community. Contributors are the lifeblood of this project and we intend to support them, to give them opportunities, to put their ideas out there for as much discussion as possible. We hope you become one of those contributors, and we hope that you contribute often. So please allow for those changes, and we hope that even our missteps are interesting to watch. We’ll be down at Citizen Desk in case you’d like to stop by and say hello.
We have big goals ahead. Podcasts, videos, personal blogs, networking, all that stuff. This is our social media. I hope you take the time to stick around, enjoy the ride, and shoot me an email if you have any ideas for making this site a happier place.
Thanks.
Day 1, and we are proud of our work.
Marcus Nelson
publisher of citizenwausau.com
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Recent Discussion
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