Berkeley blog

There’s a new blog focused on Berkeley. Says the creator: “I am happy to give blog authoring privileges to anyone who lives in Berkeley, and who commits to write about issues, events, and news that are directly related to Berkeley. People add entries as they please about Berkeley stuff, and we end up with a local weblog. Will it be as simple as that? Undoubtedly not, but it seems like a reasonable place to start.” The idea was spawned by Peter Merholz.

I’ve been talking with friends in Amherst about doing similar here, so will be interested to watch the idea closely. When I first mention the idea, people say “but we’ve got a newspaper.” Point out that having your “own” blog would mean you could write about that zoning issue that is driving the neighborhood crazy, or that soccer field mess, or the true price of multi-lingual education… and eyes start to light up. “Oh” becomes “WOW.” As blogging and broadband spread and the local news hole continues to erode in print, this is a model to watch and nuture. (Via Gawker.)