So, as you may have noticed, all has been rather quiet on the CiB front. This is partially due to me drowning in intense staff development at work (that is, my actual job) for the past couple of weeks, and also because I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the future of CiB in regards to direction, purpose and place.
CiB’s ‘about’ page clearly states:
There are two reasons for this blog:
лаптоп
- To find out what’s going on around Birmingham and promote it
- To show that blogging is a simple and effective way of engaging with audiences online
This is the most recent incarnation of CiB but I wondered about the real core of CiB and why it came to exist in the first place. Back in Nov 07 Pete put together his thoughts on the pupose of CiB, which was somewhat more detailed:
With a few exceptions I want every post on CiB to take people to somewhere else on the web where they can get more information be it an article, blog post, MySpace page, etc. CiB is not a comprehensive news service. It doesn’t exist to cover absolutely everything that’s going on in Birmingham because to attempt that would be impossible. There’s a criteria here.
- Is this something people might not be aware is going on?
- Is this something people might learn from?
- Is this doing something interesting?
- Is this using the internet in an innovative way?
- Could this help people to do what they’re doing better?
- Is posting about this going to encourage people to use the internet, and blogs in particular, for themselves?
In an ideal world I want there to be lots of blogs like CiB and a whole load more that are nothing like CiB. In fact I’d love it if this blog wasn’t necessary. I want the Birmingham creative community to be behaving online in the same way they behave at a launch party, milling around discussing ideas and introducing people to each other.
I think for me, this last part if absolutely crucial in examining CiB’s relevance and place. When CiB started, Pete identified this need to highlight and link, because other blogs were scarce and weren’t already doing this. Now, in 2009, blogs are everywhere and people are much more alert to opportunities to publicise, promote and link. Let me be clear: I’m not suggesting we have reached Pete’s original utopian vision, but we are in a very different place to that of 2007.
With this in mind, I want to invite you to tell me what you want to get from CiB – why you read, and what you want this established online vehicle to do. I have my own ideas of what CiB could or should be, but these still need to be ironed out a little bit. I’m also going to meet with those who’ve been involved with CiB throughout to look at direction, and so before we meet I would really appreciate some feedback from readers. You can either put your thoughts in the comments, or if you’d prefer to keep them private you can email me on the CiB address: createdinbirmingham@gmail.com
This is your chance to influence future direction! Please don’t be shy!
CiB is still my first point of call for creative stuff happening in Birmingham, as a (now) outsider looking in, I think it’d be a shame if it wasn’t promoting the great and good of the Birmingham creative landscape. Even if others are talking what’s going on, there’s no reason why CiB can’t provide one source for all that’s great about Birmingham…
Yeah, keep the posts coming Id say. Theres some good criteria above, but in a way Id be tempted to make it even simpler.
What Id like from CiB is to hear about anything new and exciting and stuff thats just plain good, so my very simply criteria might be:
Is it created in Birmingham?
Is it new, or good?
Obviously, there’s an element of subjectivity in deciding what is “good”, but I trust you, or whoever is editor/blogger in future to make that call.
We know that opinions vary and you cannot possibly include everything that might feasibly be construed as good, but we’re gonna be grateful for whatever choices you put before us and you can always rely on some feedback when you need it.
cheers
Rich
Xx
There seems to be quite a large responsibility on the Editor/Curator/Leader/whatever-the-title-is and CiB seems to rise or fall on the basis of their success.
I’ve always hoped there’d be more of a collaborative approach to looping in new writers, voices, thoughts to make the blog more vibrant- a real reflection of the vibrancy of the digital/creative community in Birmingham.
I’d also like to hear more about the process of how the Editor/Curator/Leader/whatever-the-title-is regenerates from one incarnation to the next. It seems less of a passing baton and more of an anoiting that happens behind the scenes.
I don’t want CiB to turn into a listings website- that’s already well provided for elsewhere.
I’d prefer profiles of “cultural hereoes” of Birmingham. Discussions about creative processes.
I affirm all of the comments so far, and especially concur with a couple of Benji’s ideas. I like the idea of a broader collaborative approach—in other words, bringing on additional voices under an agreed upon editorial structure (even if it is volunteer). I also like the idea of profiling “cultural heroes” of Birmingham.
As one who has considered relocating my creative services to Bham, CiB gives me a vital window into the creative scene and has helped me to understand some cultural trends as they unfold. I have discovered more about the creative industry in Birmingham through CiB than through any other site.
I appreciate that CiB does not attempt to be comprehensive in its coverage. Too many sites have become overrun by a torrent of indiscriminate information, rather than choosing to be more selective. Even if your focus changes, I hope you’ll continue to highlight what makes Birmingham shine.
Cheers,
JM
I’d also like to see interviews / profiles of creatives & artists in the area. Some more indepth articles written by guest authors, in addition to news articles, would keep me coming back to the site. Si
“Now, in 2009, blogs are everywhere” – well kind of I guess but I’m not sure most people take the time to get round them all and keep track. Working in the City Council most people I speak to seem to just read the Birmingham Post and The Stirrer. A few also read CiB to get a feel for what’s happening in the city’s arts scene. In that sense, the sense of having some influence, having CiB as a central port of call matters.
I feel the bringing together that happens here is invaluable; properly, genuinely invaluable. The reason I decided to take CiB’s editorial stance to task earlier in the year was because I value its presence so much. But I really think the ‘it’s an individual’s journey’ thing has run its course – it needs to learn how to agitate, it needs to reassess its approach. If there’s a funding issue about continuation then I’ve offered before to get my pen out and help write whatever fancy words are needed to write a bid (an offer that’s never been taken up by the way – maybe people think I’m shitter at it than I think I am).
Fuck – I care about this website enough to have bought the fucking t-shirt. I even wear it from time to time. If you want to innovate around income generation that way then keep it coming. If you want to register yourself as a charity and ask me to cough up a small amount per month then I’ll do that as well – maybe others will as well – who knows?
But yeah – let’s not lose this.
Apologies for the swearing.
I’d like it to be a creative news site. As simple as that. More references to more things going on that don’t get a shout in the regular press. Oh and a shout for the work. If a creative gets a win / commission / award I would like to hear about it.
Sounds modest and there’s no mention of changing the world but a useful tool for us to stay informed would be lovely thank you very much.
It’s been incredibly sad seeing CiB limp on over the last year or so, it’s shocking how an award winning blog serving an important goal can seemingly drift into unimportance.
There is still a vital role for a collective arts voice in Brum, there may not be any mainstream journalism covering the creative industries in Birmingham at all in a years time. We’re in a time where arts budgets are being slashed and creative voices need any help they can get to publicise their work.
CiB is a resource that should be celebrated, it’s role as I see it should emphasise the linking up of artistic communities that would otherwise exist in isolation, a role that is unique and is not covered by any other site in Brum. The site could and should evolve into an active, vibrant community of creative voices.
There are tonnes of features that could be added to the site. off the top of my head, why not get artists to introduce their projects to a wider audience? how about covering any of the arts campaigns in Birmingham (has there been any coverage at all of the campaign for a modern art gallery?), how about organising awards for the creative industries in Brum? or simply seminars where artists from different disciplines can learn and collaborate with each other?
CiB has a brand name that could be used for so much more than it has been recently, so much work has been put into it over the years that its death would be a tragedy.
Interestingly, I had a chat with Pete Ashton recently about CiB. I was bemoaning the fact that almost all the urban/culture blogs I’ve been following have, in one way or another, either just run out of steam, or changed over the past three years. That includes CiB. I was worried about this; Pete wasn’t.
One of the big problems is that it simply takes a ton of time to put in the legwork to make a blog like this readable and a must-visit. You need to do more – much more – than just posting links to other people’s interesting stuff. Ultimately this turns into a merry-go round.
We’re all able to be author-publishers now, and that’s great. But there are drawbacks.
Pete suggests that if CiB is no more, it’s no big deal, and maybe it’s time has come and gone. To replace it, just go and build your own newsreader up to do the job instead. Fine as far as it goes. But, again, it assumes that there is always going to be discoverable original content or activity out there to start the whole comment and feedback process. Which takes me back to my first point.
I know this might seem lazy, but there is a whole lot of sense to having a CiB which passionately champions the creative arts in our town. I don’t want to see the withering away of CiB. On the other hand, it’s obvious that doing this right is chewing through your spare time.
I think that CIB is still necessary and perhaps needs more than one person – each with a specialism
I used to do interviews for the site when Chris edited but I guess after he stopped it just fizzled out, plus I had to get on with uni work.
I wouldn’t mind getting back to interviewing though – even if I don’t film them email interviews are always fine to read and a lot less time consuming.
Thanks Adrienne, for pointing out that CiB needs to evolve a little to survive in a time when countless blogs are dying off, I totally agree.
Editing CiB, and deciding where to go with it is not an easy job, and my few months felt like treading water for the most part as I just didn’t have the time and resources to make any significant changes or carry out the things I intended to. Maybe CiB needs a editor in the future who can jump in at the deep end and dedicate to it full time? With no funding in place at the moment, Adrienne and I before have had to run the site in our spare time as well as our full time careers, which doesn’t leave much time for strategic planning / writing funding bids / finding advertising etc.
I agree with the suggestions above that the community has a lot to contribute to CiB, and in my stint I did a couple of call -outs for future contributors, with very mild success. If this is to become a viable model for the future, do we need to offer contributors a better incentive for giving up their time?
Hi Adrienne, actually these are exactly the issues we’re currently grappling with in establishing the Creative Nottingham blog project – (our development site: http://www.creativenotts.wordpress.com – due to launch Sept 09). I think all of the above suggestions are worthy, but rely on a sustainability which grant-in-aid finance did (and should still do so in my opinion) offer CIB for its formative years. Given there is no funding to be hand in Nottingham, our approach to create a ‘many hands make like work’ partnership approach (currently 4 people involvement, plus a few other for tech support), which also considers income generation from day 1 to incentivise participation.
This is a hard course to steer from where you are at now, particularly given the wealth of public financing for the arts in Birmingham when a small contribution to linking it up should surely be a non-brainer for the Council or Arts Council. And it is sad that given the number of bloggers in Birmingham few want to take up the reigns of contributing to this site, but maybe Pete’s right that diversity is a good thing and people are happier and more autonomous doing their own blogging thing.
But I would suggest taking up Dave Harte’s offer to seek funding from other sources may be the best approach for now, and I might suggest that rather than one editor, finance could be used to support a pool of people at a lower level of participation to both blog and work on business development too to try and make it more sustainably future-proof, yet has the double-win of enhancing diversity on the team and bring in new ideas, ‘social graphs’, different sectors etc. It’s certainly what I’d love for the Nottingham blog project. I really hope you can find a way to continue.
It is disappointing to log on and find the lead story is of CIB losing its way and floating the option of bowing out, rather than forging ahead with confidence. I think its fair to say CIB used to be better. It’s something to do with being led by an individual with subjective opinions and personal passion for the stuff they are writing about – rather than the more neutral ‘reporting’ and fair handed style and associated uncertainty about what to include etc – that it seems to have gravitated towards. I think that is a general trend and not specifically a comment about the latest editor – the weight of expectation and abundance of opinion (of which this is another one!) must be a burden. Perhaps it is not a sustainable format, either it needs to remain driven by the individual who set the tone in the first place or the baton is properly passed on to others, who will inevitably be different and so ‘it’ will become something else in character and runs the risk of losing it’s identity. The question is whether the entity of CIB is bigger than the personalities involved and can transcend changes at the helm?
To evolve into a reporting ‘team’ could be a good option, but it could also lose the spirit of independence that many value it for, unless it has a strong editorial position and cultivates people with real opinions. Which does run the risk of attracting those with an axe to grind or who could be accused of being critical of things, which surely has to be part of the territory – but is pretty much taboo in this city. As an advocate and occasional visitor to CIB I have to say it has tended towards a rather introverted and self-questioning journal of late, instead of focusing on ‘interesting things that are happening that you might not have heard of’. The original criteria and basic thoughts on CIB by Pete Ashton that are quoted above seem still valid and very straightforward.
But times change and a lot of good things do come to a natural end. I’m not convinced that CIB is not needed anymore, far from it. Actually, while there might be a lot of info out there online I’m not aware of anything that fills this gap. One of the selling points of CIB is that it is all in one place and has been filtered to find some of the gems that might have slipped past the usual, more mainstream channels. This leads me to agree with some of the others here that this is a resource issue, and far from whimpering out, CIB should be considering taking it to the next level and looking at how to resource it. B’ham seriously lacks independent voices, critical space and a platform for some of its fantastic ‘underground’ culture and arts. If CIB didn’t exist someone would have to invent it, as the need is still as strong as ever.