This afternoon I gave my research seminar presentation. It was good to come off the back of Dave & Jerome last time as we are working in a similar area, but from different directions. Picking up on a theme from that presentation last time about the problem of defining hyperlocal media, I spent some time working through the ways in which hyperlocal  has been defined. From this position I could suggest three key repertoires that are being used to describe and define hyperlocal media. These are:

• New media / technology
• Community & alternative media
• Professional / commercial media

Each repertoire provides us with ways of making sense of hyperlocal media, and those who talk about hyperlocal may appropriate each to varying degrees. Whilst we continue to negotiate hyperlocal through these repertoires, the definition remains unfixed and this can create tensions and issues within hyperlocal communities of practice. A great example of this today, this pre-event discussion about Birmingham City University’s Rethinking Media conference shows how the project of hyperlocal media is not set and exposes one key fault-line: the question of sustainability.

You can follow my thinking on this topic as it unfolds in some sporadic PhD blog posts on my website.

Thanks to colleagues and students who attended for their valuable input. The paper will now be redrafted ahead of presentation at MeCCSA 2013.