LJWorld.com

The traditional news cycle is dead. Take a moment of silence.

...

OK, now let's move on.

My friend Ellyn Angelotti, Interactivity Editor at the Poynter Institute (@ellynangelotti), developed this diagram of the "new" news cycle. It integrates social technology tools like blogs, Facebook, Twitter, comments and e-mail into the "traditional" news cycle to show how information flows through the Internet.

new_news_cycle809.jpg

If you're a journalist, it shows you that information sharing doesn't start with you anymore (come on - did it ever?)

While this is the news cycle now, we know we need to look ahead. We have to innovate on what currently exists so we don't get left behind like many news organizations have been the past few years. WellCommons, a health-focused open forum/niche news site, is the first step in executing our vision of the future of online news.

We took the "new" news cycle and cut out the middle man, giving increased real estate and control to community members. Our "newer" news cycle looks like this:

modifiednewscycle.jpg

We're all one big, happy, content-sharing family. There is one community, with multiple resources, exchanging information all over the place. Publishers on social networks become part of the flow naturally without having to pass through a news org's filter.

WellCommons is simply a way to organize this chaos and make a safe, trusted environment that is:

• Available
• Easy to find
• Useful

Here's the catch: This new approach requires users to step up and provide valuable content. We still have a reporter who posts blogs/stories, but we rely heavily on users to post, share, comment, link and interact with each other ... or the community fails. Live together, die alone. R.I.P. LOST!

It's a big gamble, but the alternative is staying complacent and accepting the death of our industry.

Our plan is to integrate this model into our sites, giving you the opportunity to share information in niche communities relevant to your interests. To get started on WellCommons, watch this video. If you already have an LJWorld.com account, you don't have to re-register. Just sign in and poke around.

If you really like basil plants, I suggest you read my WellCommons blog series for the summer on trying to eat local + keeping the first plant I've ever owned alive. It's ... riveting.

February 5 is National Wear Red Day - a campaign to raise awareness for heart disease. Since heart disease is the cause of one in three female deaths in America, we want you to share your stories by entering our #KSGoRed Photo Contest on our social networks.

We're asking you to submit a photo of yourself wearing red on February 5 on either our Twitter account or our Facebook page with a short caption about why you're wearing red. In exchange for your participation, we'll be giving away a gift certificate to Headlines Salon to one random person who enters the contest by following the rules below:

Twitter

• Follow @LJWorld or @LJW6NEWS Health on Twitter. You'll need to do this so we can DM you if you win. Don't have an account? Sign up!
• Tweet a link to a photo of yourself wearing red (using TwitPic, yFrog, Facebook, Flickr, etc.)
• Make sure to include the hashtag #KSGoRed (if you don't include the hashtag, your entry will not be valid)
• If you have space left, include a message about why you're participating
• We'll take your photo and add it to the National Wear Red Day gallery on our Facebook page

Facebook

• Become our fan. This will let you post content on our wall and allow us to message you if you win.
• Upload a photo of yourself wearing red to our wall. Don't forget to tag yourself and share your story in the caption!
• We'll take your photo and add it to the National Wear Red Day gallery on our Facebook page

Just a few more rules

• Only one entry per person. That means if you enter on Twitter, you're not allowed to enter on Facebook.
• The contest isn't limited to Lawrence residents, but the gift certificate is only valid at Headlines Salon on 23rd and Louisiana.
• If you don't have the capability to enter via Twitter or Facebook, leave us a link to your photo in the comments.
• Photos that violate Lawrence Journal-World Use Policy Agreement will not be accepted as valid entries.
• Entries will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. on February 5, 2010.
• Entries will not be accepted until February 5, 2010

The winner will be announced on Monday, February 8, 2010 on our Twitter account and Facebook page.

For more information on local Wear Red Day events, check out health reporter Karrey Britt's blog.