Normally, I drive to work. But being as I was without a car yesterday, I took public transit to public transit to pound pavement. I arrived at 15 minutes work early, after a nearly two hour commute.

Don’t worry. It wasn’t that bad. I had a chance to read physical copies of some local newspapers. I’ve taken to reading my news online, so time spent with newsprint is sacred (and besides, there’s a crossword, sudoku, etc.).

Anyhow, I picked up the Boston Metro and the BostonNow—the newest, free commuter daily to reach the market. While familiarizing myself to the interactive features, printed copy from BostonNow blogs and directions to online comment forums, I noticed a small, yellow box in the bottom right corner of page four. Headline read “contribute,” with a mouse pointer symbol, a hint to get online and check it out.

Every morning at 10:30am, the BostonNow editorial team webcasts their meeting (see the newsroom here).

We, the PR people (and the general public too), can join that daily, editorial meeting and get an insider’s look on tomorrow’s paper. Moreover, we’re invited to offer comments, ideas, feedback… So get clicking and contribute!

But wait! I’m sure everyone out there can see the potential for abuse here with disruptive pitching–including BostonNow. They included this disclaimer: “If you have an obscene username or abuse the chat module, the moderator will remove you from the webcast.”

A colleague here suggested another potential problem here for the BostonNow in letting everyone see your news before it goes to print. If everyone knows your stories, what’s stopping the Metro from publishing the scoop?

I say interactivity makes for exclusivity. But I’d love to hear some comments on this question.

Share on Facebook