Spy Community Media

Spy Community Media exists to provide local communities with the tools and technical support to build and sustain hyperlocal web-based newspapers with the primary goal of educating residents on important local and regional news, culture and the arts in the areas these enewspapers serve. The Spy was created to help build and maintain a network of in... dependent community newspapers empowered to be an important informational and educational portal for the needs of those communities. Why. The decline of rural and regional traditional newspapers is a troubling and permanent trend in American society today. Many small communities throughout the country have lost their legacy newspapers, while other towns have seen their local newspaper significantly reduce overall news coverage, particularly in the areas of art and regional culture. The SCM provides the tools and training to allow these communities to maintain a professional source for local news, art and culture, or provide an important alternative local news source. How. The Spy has created a unique template for web-based newspapers through the creation of the Chestertown Spy in 2009. That original model has been expanded with the establishment of other test sites in Maryland (Talbot Spy and Queen Anne's Spy) and can now be quickly replicated in other communities seeking to improve local news and educational sources. While the template itself is a powerful tool, the Spy also provides these local newspaper staff and volunteers with the training, mentoring, technical and financial support to allow them to operate a professional and economically sustainable service to the community.Read More