MyRye, Hyper and HuffPo
In a HuffingtonPost.com write-up on hyperlocal media yesterday afternoon called "Invasion of the Hyperlocals", MyRye.com received a nice mention in David A. Singer's list of Westchester hypermedia notables.
Although if Singer thinks the "Invasion of the Hyperlocals" just started, we guess MyRye.com must have been some sort of advance team or beachhead, because we have been at this since 2006. It seems in the wake of Tim Armstrong's AOL spending cash to Seed (.com) Patch.com in Jersey, Long Island and Westchester (Rye was the first Patch outlet in our fine county), Yelp turning down a reported $550 million from Google and others like Outside.in raising venture cash, that hyperlocal is the new, new thing.
In HuffPo, Singer says:
"As for other hyperlocal sites (in addition to the great one you're reading from), there are a myriad of sites but none right now with the ambition of AOL's Patch. Larchmont has a hyperlocal site, the Larchmont Gazette which is newsy and detailed. Rye has www.myrye.com, and Croton has www.crotonblog.com. I'm sure there are others that I have failed to mention. The New York Times has set up three hyperlocals in New Jersey and two for Brooklyn– and is rumored to be looking to coming to Westchester."
As far as ambition, let’s not confuse that with free cash flow from a declining ISP business. Patch is great, but ambition comes in many forms. For many hyperlocal publishers such as MyRye.com and our neighbors up and down the sound shore such as GetinLoop.com and WestportNow, it is about giving giving voice and becoming a true enthusiast for the communities that we serve.
(If you are an independent, hyperlocal publisher, please drop us a line and introduce yourself.)
Ah yes — I’ve already been chastised for leaving out some hyperlocals — but I did say my list was nonexhaustive. Right now we don’t know what the entry of AOL into this space means. I’m more focused on seeing hyperlocals being a venue for positive, productive civic engagement and for solid investigative reporting (vs tabloid-esque stories about drinking and driving and salary stories without context. As the JN fades into the distance, sites like yours will be more critical in defining this space and what happens there.
Nice mention Jay – this Singer guy has it generally right. Unlike American Towns and Patch, you actually serve the community rather than a muddy corporate vision. Wouldn’t it be nice if an advertiser could by a package including MyRye and The Rye Record and The Sound Shore News?
poor David…it was I who yelled at him 🙂 but his message is right on. Personally I think the journalistically driven sites, as I hope mine is, (www.theloopny.com) will rise from the ashes of the cookie cutter aggregators….