ideas & internet dmackey on 30 Nov 2007 03:57 am
Google, Maps, and Local News.
Finding local news is still not as easy as it should be. Sure, you can go to most popular news sites these days and tell them you want to follow a zip code, city, or state’s news. I utilize Topix’s RSS feed feature to track news. But its not enough and here’s why:
- Zip Code - Is imprecise. While it covers a general geographical area it doesn’t necessarily cover the exact geographical area you are interested in. For example, you may be at the northern part of a zip code and better know two or three zip codes that surround you, than the rest of your zip code further to the south. This also holds true for counties. I used to live one mile from the border of Greene County, but actually lived in Albany County (New York).
- City - While giving news on the city you live in it ignores surrounding areas. In my area the cities are so meshed together you can cross through one and end up back in the same city you originated from. In states that are old and not built on grids city lines follow nonsensical traditions.
- State - I might want to know the state news, but if I get a local view of the entire state, I’ll be overwhelmed.
Okay, enough complaining. How do we fix this problem? Well, right now I’m focused on Informed Networker and don’t really have time to spend on this project so I’ll share my solution, take it for free (though you can give me some money if you wish when you are successful):
Take a map (e.g. Google Maps) and allow people to trace an outline of the area they want news on. This lets them include just the right number of cities. The area that ends up highlighted is the area they want news on.
The company best in a position to take advantage of this methodology is Google. Why? Because this method works best if each article is tagged with its geographical coordinates (longitude/latitude) and everyone jumps when Google hollers so one could expect instant adoption of the inclusion of geographical standards in nearly every major and minor paper - who wouldn’t want their stories listed on Google?
Yes, its simple - but it would work and sure would give us better news targeting than we currently have. A startup or other established company could utilize this idea as well, just don’t expect all the news publishers to immediately implement the coordinates system. Instead you would probably need to search stories for coordinates, then map them automatically. Still, very doable, even as a mashup.