you’re the expert, kind of

Add comment March 8th, 2008

“is user-generated content dead?”

when i saw the newsweek web exclusive’s headline, i thought, “whoa!” but if you read the story, it’s really hinting at web 3.0.

at first the web was all about the authoritative sources feeding you the news. web 2.0 meant users submitted the content and chose how they wanted it — the wiki world, so to speak. now we may be headed toward something in between, with experts vetting the netizen world to provide human analysis for better search or better, more credible content.

newspaper web sites are well-positioned for this web 3.0 era, because we’ve never been the wild west in the first place. we bring together the power of our readers and our journalists.

smart talk: hard to pick a winner

Add comment March 8th, 2008

talk about overwhelming: rockford woman received close to 60 entries for its smart talk contest giveaway. i laughed and cried when i read entries about our readers’ girl groups and beloved in-laws. they reminded me how important friends and family can be, and i am blessed.

still, i had to choose winners: diane murray of mount morris and jan pennell of roscoe (who told me she is “so excited!”). read their stories here. we’re sharing other submissions as we have space, so you can smile like i did.