An analysis of music scene news: The novelist who broke the story - by N.L. Belardes
About three months ago, N.L. Belardes, a little-known novelist in the agriculture and oil city of Bakersfield, California decided to write about the music scene and the arts, to write a few reviews, to network with artists, to build a fan base to help increase book sales... one month into it, the Rock and Roll Farm piece broke the cyber waves criticizing Jerry's Pizza, supposed kingpin of downtown music venues. Another month passed and the Wing Wahs fire broke on nlbelardes.com three days before the Californian ran a story. How can one man blogging in the music scene break a news story all but ignored by the city's leading newspaper? The music scene and downtown happenings just wasn't the big news, that's why.
Then someone at the downtown newspaper, The Bakersfield Californian, ala Bakersfield.com realized that Bakersfield folks are online and unified in the music and art scene. There's traffic there, folks, online traffic that is, and there's a new strategy to gain readership; always a goal for any newspaper. Without readers, a newspaper dies, jobs are lost and in effect, news is lost.
And then the Sepeda murder. N.L. breaks a story again, this time beating the Californian's online presence Bakersfield.com by 5.5 hours (followed up by a bigger piece and the first published pictures of the event). In a sector of the city normally half-forgotten, the downtown area and the music scene has suddenly become the biggest news in Bakersfield, California. Just take a look at the all-out assault on the Sepeda Murder and its spin-off news stories on downtown businesses, downtown dance clubs, downtown music, downtown punks, gangbangers, and so forth. You can find a comprehensive list on my blog page. The Californian has made the music and art scene serious business these days. Just look at the troops on the journalistic front lines, all upending N.L. Belardes, the Matt Drudge-esque novelist/blogger who helped spark this new realm in Bakersfield online news, Bakersfield print news, and Bakersfield online news discussion. And because of N.L.'s traffic, focus, passion, and keen-eye for big news, Californian staff writers Steven Mayer, Robert Price, Danielle Belton, Christina Sosa, Mark Barna, Christina Vance, and Steve E. Swenson have all been writing about the Bakersfield downtown area and music scene. It's a complex strategy because news has to be sold in order for news to make money. Controversy breeds readership. N.L. should know, he's a news junky. He surfs the valley news every morning just for the latest controversial happenings around the valley just to give folks a bigger birds-eye view of not just Bakersfield, but valley news. (take a look at the N.L. Daily News)
Most recent online by Bakersfield.com as part of thier strategy to capture their complex readership in one downtown news story is the 'Belton Discussions', a Bakersfield.com blog effort to capitalize on, and spark a discussion on the recent downtown murder, downtown music and cultural happenings. Included in an online effort to capture readership by providing an engaging forum on the hottest Bakersfield news topic, 'Begin Bouncing the Bars' was added as a fiery, devil's advocate type of piece to instill controversy and bring in more folks to express their opinions on the hotly debated topic of Big Dan Sepeda's murder.
And who has been ignored in all of this? N.L. Belardes. Get the record straight folks. N.L. broke the story, and N.L. led the front lines in the debates online, and even in 'The Belton Discussions'.
Thankfully, N.L. has been brought on as a community blog to Bakersfield.com. He may never be interviewed as the news source who broke the big story, but just remember, you read it on nlbelardes.com first, and that's because it was a music and arts related event that may have otherwise slipped through Bakersfield news and events. And that's because Kern County is much larger than one music scene; there's a lot of news to report. Let's hope that the big brother newspaper will continue to be challenged by local writers like N.L. who are as passionate, inspired, and as determined as those crazy Matt Drudge bloggers across America who can file a news story in between trips to the refrigerator...
Then someone at the downtown newspaper, The Bakersfield Californian, ala Bakersfield.com realized that Bakersfield folks are online and unified in the music and art scene. There's traffic there, folks, online traffic that is, and there's a new strategy to gain readership; always a goal for any newspaper. Without readers, a newspaper dies, jobs are lost and in effect, news is lost.
And then the Sepeda murder. N.L. breaks a story again, this time beating the Californian's online presence Bakersfield.com by 5.5 hours (followed up by a bigger piece and the first published pictures of the event). In a sector of the city normally half-forgotten, the downtown area and the music scene has suddenly become the biggest news in Bakersfield, California. Just take a look at the all-out assault on the Sepeda Murder and its spin-off news stories on downtown businesses, downtown dance clubs, downtown music, downtown punks, gangbangers, and so forth. You can find a comprehensive list on my blog page. The Californian has made the music and art scene serious business these days. Just look at the troops on the journalistic front lines, all upending N.L. Belardes, the Matt Drudge-esque novelist/blogger who helped spark this new realm in Bakersfield online news, Bakersfield print news, and Bakersfield online news discussion. And because of N.L.'s traffic, focus, passion, and keen-eye for big news, Californian staff writers Steven Mayer, Robert Price, Danielle Belton, Christina Sosa, Mark Barna, Christina Vance, and Steve E. Swenson have all been writing about the Bakersfield downtown area and music scene. It's a complex strategy because news has to be sold in order for news to make money. Controversy breeds readership. N.L. should know, he's a news junky. He surfs the valley news every morning just for the latest controversial happenings around the valley just to give folks a bigger birds-eye view of not just Bakersfield, but valley news. (take a look at the N.L. Daily News)
Most recent online by Bakersfield.com as part of thier strategy to capture their complex readership in one downtown news story is the 'Belton Discussions', a Bakersfield.com blog effort to capitalize on, and spark a discussion on the recent downtown murder, downtown music and cultural happenings. Included in an online effort to capture readership by providing an engaging forum on the hottest Bakersfield news topic, 'Begin Bouncing the Bars' was added as a fiery, devil's advocate type of piece to instill controversy and bring in more folks to express their opinions on the hotly debated topic of Big Dan Sepeda's murder.
And who has been ignored in all of this? N.L. Belardes. Get the record straight folks. N.L. broke the story, and N.L. led the front lines in the debates online, and even in 'The Belton Discussions'.
Thankfully, N.L. has been brought on as a community blog to Bakersfield.com. He may never be interviewed as the news source who broke the big story, but just remember, you read it on nlbelardes.com first, and that's because it was a music and arts related event that may have otherwise slipped through Bakersfield news and events. And that's because Kern County is much larger than one music scene; there's a lot of news to report. Let's hope that the big brother newspaper will continue to be challenged by local writers like N.L. who are as passionate, inspired, and as determined as those crazy Matt Drudge bloggers across America who can file a news story in between trips to the refrigerator...
This entry was posted by N.L. Belardes, on
Saturday, April 16, 2005.
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