Media Wales expands community news sites with new launch for The Valleys

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Media Wales has launched the next phase of its community news websites with a new site for Pontypridd. The yourPonty microsite follows the launch of yourCardiff in February and takes the same design as its sister site, but marks a move into greater online coverage of the valleys by the news group.

The site will offer blog posts from journalists at Media Wales and non-journalists within the local area, as well as events listings, information on local council and public services, and links to other relevant sites and news.

The group publishes 17 print titles in the valleys, which already feature event news and items from community correspondents in the area.

Joni Ayn Alexander, who is behind the latest launch, told Journalism.co.uk she is encouraging those print contributors to blog for the Pontypridd site, but wants to offer new content online rather to complement and not duplicate the print edition.

The existing audience of the Pontypridd & Llantrisant Observer in print and the news group's efforts to build online communities around its valley titles using Facebook pages has helped the launch of the new site, says Alexander. " The Observer already has more than 1,100 Facebook 'friends' , so when we first put out our posts through the group on Monday, we actually got a reaction," she added.

The publisher is considering launching more community, local area sites, but will assess the success of the Pontypridd and Cardiff sites before expanding further.

As a US journalist, Alexander worked as a sub-editor on a metro paper in Oklahoma and later helped USA Today run a number of niche-interest blogs at a national level. But she says the challenges in running a local news site and community are very different.

“In the Welsh valleys there's a very strong community," she said. "I'm learning that at a local level the conversation is very different. Also when you ask local people to blog, you can get some really great contributions, but with others you still have to use your editorial judgement."

Within the newsroom, her role is to coach reporters and encourage them to take on more blogging and control of the site, she explained.

Having launched in time for the general election, the site has already put its data store area, where it will list data relating to Pontypridd, to good use, asking prospective parliamentary candidates to upload their declarations of interest.

The feature has already generated its own news as some candidates were quicker than others to upload the information, sparking debate between them at a local hustings, adds Alexander.