After a month of planning, gathering news and Twittering like crazy – Dalston People has finally launched as the first hyperlocl news website in the area.
The website, for which I am Community Publisher, is part of Associated Northcliffe Digital’s new pilot project, The Local People. I pitched the idea of a hyperlocal news site in Dalston to Northcliffe back in May, and since then the team have been working really hard to design and create the site.
Dalston, to me, seemed an obvious choice for a website of this kind. There is always something going on in Dalston, whether it be a gig, an art show, a protest or a new development. The community is made up largely of arty types and it has been continuously labelled this year as ‘the new Shoreditch’. Some even went as far as saying E8 is the ‘coolest place in Britain’. I felt I had a strong pitch for the Northcliffe team to create a website for Dalston.
Since the launch, I have been working hard to get as many people registered on the site. Three days in, and I already have 50 registered users – which is fantastic. However, the hardest challenge will be to get users contributing news and comments and engaging in discussions. Hopefully once the site has been running for a few weeks, one or two will get the ball rolling. We shall see! But for now, I’m very happy with the look and layout of the site, and am hoping the community of Dalston will begin the use the site in anyway they feel comfortable.
Any questions or queries about the site, please contact me!
