Bloggers meet in Portland
I had the great pleasure of attending a local blogger meet-up last night in Portland at the studios of KATU-TV. I’m not sure of the headcount, but 50-60 is probably about right.
As I travel around the country and do these gatherings, I find that the blogosphere of each community generally reflects the personality of the community itself. Bloggers are fun people to hang with — bright, witty, passionate, curious, and often quite comedic. Portland’s is a fun-loving bunch, moreso, I think, than their neighbors to the north in Seattle, where the humor is a bit more restrained (exceptions noted). It reminded me more of a meet-up with bloggers in Nashville than, say, San Francisco or Seattle.
Like other smart local media outlets, KATU-TV has taken a position of embracing the personal media revolution in its community. This isn’t easy for TV stations, but it’s an important first step in participating in the conversation — the buzz — that is the cyberspace community. I don’t see how media companies will be relevant in the years to come without taking this step.
And at every blogger meet-up, there’s always one blogger that really makes me smile. In Portland, that award goes to Athena, shown below holding court with (from left to right) Rob Dunlop of Fisher Communications, owners of KATU-TV, Don Pratt, KATU-TV news director, and Matt Davis, a reporter for the Portland Mercury and an active participant in the alternative paper’s Blogtown, PDX blog.
Athena tickled me. She’s the author of a book about ghosts in Seattle, so she begged Don for a tour of the KATU basement. Her blog is called TheBlissQuest, where her slogan is “Eat my bliss…” I asked her how the quest was going, and she said she’s experienced bliss only in bits and pieces so far, but “I’m still waiting for the big chunks.”
But Athena was just one of many Portland bloggers that I met, and everyone had something unique about them and a story to tell. Bloggers are like that, which is why I enjoy being in their company so much.
August 30th, 2007 at 6:11 pm
You’re awesome! Thank you for introducing me to everyone and for the hug and such a flattering mention on your blog. I hope you had as much fun as I did!
You’re right, this step is not easy for TV stations. I think KATU is forging ahead into some cool territory that if they do it right – could end up being very rewarding for both them, and the community at large.
Have a great day