Online news service to cover community issues

For more information: Sharon McGowan, Project Director and Editor
smcgowan@milwaukeenns.org • 414-604-NEWS (6397)

For immediate release
March 21, 2011

MILWAUKEE — A new multimedia website that provides objective, professional reporting on urban issues in five Milwaukee communities launches today at www.milwaukeenns.org. The pilot communities are Lindsay Heights, Clarke Square, and the Layton Boulevard West neighborhoods of Burnham Park, Silver City and Layton Park.

Media outlets are free to use articles, videos, audio reports and photographs from the website at no cost, with credit to the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service.

The site also includes interactive Community Pages geared to each neighborhood, where residents and organizations can find information on upcoming events and submit content on local activities and issues.

Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service (NNS) offers comprehensive coverage of issues such as education, public safety, economic development, health and wellness, recreation, employment, youth development and housing that are important to the people who live and work in the five neighborhoods.

NNS is a project of United Neighborhood Centers of Milwaukee. According to Tony Shields, its executive director, “The news service provides an opportunity for the wider Milwaukee community to learn more about the neighborhoods, and for neighborhood leaders to learn from one another’s experiences.”

Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service already has garnered significant community support. The Diederich College of Communication at Marquette University is partnering with NNS by providing training, equipment and a multimedia editor. The newsroom is housed at the college, and internships are available to students. Diederich Dean Lori Bergen is a member of the NNS editorial advisory board

“Our purpose is to tell a balanced story about successes and challenges in bringing new vitality to these historic neighborhoods,” said Editor and Project Director Sharon McGowan. “We will follow stories such as the Longfellow School/Journey House partnership in Clarke Square, the upcoming changes at North Division High School in Lindsay Heights and community planning efforts underway in Silver City, Burnham Park and Layton Park,” McGowan added.

“People who care about the city and understand its importance to the region will want to bookmark this site,” said author and historian John Gurda, a member of the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service editorial advisory board.

Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service is supported in part by a grant from the Zilber Family Foundation.