The Internet might not be an infant any more, but it certainly can be described as a toddler. Over the last two decades there have been dramatic changes as the Internet has become a part of most people’s lives. The 80s were a world of basic websites, while the 90s introduced bright flashing & scrolling texts. The beginning of the 21st century saw an expansion of broadband access across the country and a dramatic increase in the use of flash animation.
Almost a decade into the new century, with a more technically savvy population, websites are now moving away from flash and focusing more on usability. Broadband provided the speed necessary for heavy flash applications, but simultaneously people’s need for speed increased. Flash and standard HTML pages have given way to designs employing CMS, content management systems, which also allow for non-technical persons to administer and update their websites. This has led to websites having greater depth, and creating a new dilemma as navigation structure catches up with the increase in content.
The growth of blogs where individual people shared their own thoughts and ideas led to the development of sites like Facebook and MySpace. These entities tapped into a renewed vision of the Internet’s potential in fostering community. This sense of being part of a community has now been adopted by major corporations that try to personalize their company’s image. The founders of The Journal, Charlie & Caron McCormick, are also the owners of Cicero Designs, and the following Q&A offers some insights on the direction of the Internet and why they developed The Journals.
Why did you start your hyperlocal journal?
Caron: When my son started pre-k, I had a little extra time on my hands and was looking for a way to make money and hopefully use my design skills. I worked for almost fifteen years with Henry Wolf who was one of the premier art directors for magazines like Harper’s Bazaar and Esquire. He was very old-school, so we never did technical work and Charlie helped fill that gap in the beginning.
Charlie: She’s pretty technical now…But we actually started The Journal because we wanted to advertise Cicero Designs but could not afford it. It was cheaper to build our own newspaper and advertise ourselves in it. Then we started reading up on community journalism and it evolved into that. At this point it’s really a social enterprise and hopefully in the near future we can finish the paperwork for non-profit status, that’s where we are headed.
While The Journal is still relatively new, there’s big money behind the move towards hyperlocal journalism. Do you foresee competition in the near future?
Caron: I’m not sure we really care.
Charlie: The New York Times is venturing into hyperlocal news in New Jersey, and another company Patch is also; then you have American Towns and Topix. There’s another outfit that develops hyperlocal sites for the North Jersey Media Group, but their motto is, “You’re not in the newspaper business, you’re in the advertising business.”
Caron: We think it’s a nice thing for the community, so I’ve never felt we we’re in competition with anybody.
Charlie: I like competition in that maybe I can learn something, but we’re not necessarily competing. I think when we get our non-profit status that will certainly differentiate us.
Has The Journal paid off in getting Cicero Designs work?
Caron: We recently launched a website for a lifestyle center mall. The mall is home to forty retail shops and over forty professional offices.
Charlie: This was a fun project because it allowed us to develop the sense of community which people look for, but make it very user friendly. It definitely beats out almost every other mall website in terms of being graphically pleasing and very functional.
Caron: It’s fun, but the design aspect also is work. We are hired by a client, so we need to integrate our knowledge with what the customer envisions. I might have some creative ideas, but the client knows their customer base and that’s an important consideration.
Charlie: That’s true. That’s Caron’s job. I like things to look good, but I’m more concerned with people finding what they want quickly and easily. The Internet is about here and now, and I don’t want to wait; and I don’t want to be overwhelmed with choices. Websites that cover every square inch with something to click just don’t make sense.
What do you recommend to people or businesses looking for a website?
Charlie: We’ve been using CMS lately. It stands for content management systems but basically means that once we’ve built the site, the owner can update it and maintain it themselves without any technical knowledge.
Caron: And we always recommend clients own the site themselves. We do host some sites, but we strongly discourage it.
Charlie: It’s good business. We don’t make any money on hosting, and people should really own their own domain independent of us. Like the town website for Lodi, NJ and the Oakland Chamber of Commerce, they’re technically owned by the web developer. We’re very upfront about protecting the client’s interests.
What do you think of sites like MySpace, Facebook and Twitter?
Caron: I like Facebook. I just started using it recently and have gotten back in touch with people I grew up with or went to school with; it’s fun.
Charlie: Facebook is nice. MySpace is for a younger set, and too many of them go crazy with their layout and it can make me dizzy.
And Twitter?
Charlie: Twitter had its 15 minutes of fame during a hostage crisis when someone inside was twittering messages to their blog. It has its uses….but really, for the most part our lives are fairly mundane. Sharing the minutia of life like that sounds more like punishment than fun.
Do you let your children use the Internet?
Caron: They both started using computers and the Internet before they were 3, and the oldest is in kindergarten now. Charlie created a webpage for them that has links to all safe sites, so for now we don’t have concerns.
Charlie: I fear for myself and them as they get older. I really want them to enjoy childhood, enjoy it, and not be dealing with trash they might come across earlier than they should. As they get older there are ways I can limit where they go and track what they do, but I’m hoping they will be smart enough to get around it, really. I think as they get older we’re going to need to have “the talk”, and it won’t be about birds and bees specifically. I think we’ll talk about values and healthy choices. We don’t lock the cabinet under the kitchen sink anymore because the kids know about poisons, I hope they’ll learn that poisons can enter through words and images.
Caron: I’ll concur, mostly. If have reason to be concerned, I’ll do what I need to do. I don’t like the idea of spying, but I’m a mother.
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