Over 20,000 Unique Viewers have visited the Hickory Hound

Earlier this week, on Monday to be exact, we passed the 20,000 Unique Viewer mark. I appreciate the fact that so many people have visited this site even though we deal in a subject with a narrow focus when compared to the world at large.

We have had people come to this site, maybe the better word is stumble, from every continent on the globe and from just about every State in the United States. This site is still in its infancy and we are treading along just fine, even though I would like to eventually reach that critical mass. I still believe that this site is very important and we have seen good results along the way. This is the new media, some will call it the micro-media; but I prefer to call it advocacy media.

We aren't here to cover sports, give the weather from day-to day, cover pop culture, or the obituaries. We are here as representatives of the local culture. We are here for opinion. We are here to give the average person in this community a voice. Please feel free to comment on any article. We want a dialogue.

I facilitated this blog utilizing Blogspot.com, which is owned by Google. I appreciate Google, because they have provided me with tools that allow me, an average citizen, to have a voice. I know that a lot of people are scared of Google. They are worried that Google is spreading its tentacles into everything. Without access to the World Wide Web and the ability to create a blog, it would have been a lot harder to imagine anything close to what we are doing here taking shape -- Just think about 20 years ago. And if this community does receive and achieve this expanded capacity of Data Communications, then it has the potential to allow the citizens of this community to participate more fully in the process of governance. There will be no excuses not to pay some attention to what is going on.

It is my hope, along with Harry Hipps and several others, that soon local governmental meetings will be televised via webcam and archived for on demand viewership. This type of hands on interaction with government will help elected officials, city staff, and the public have a closer bond with one another. It is my hope that this will create an idea we can call "The Great Conversation."

No longer will I report to the interested, the summaries of minutes of the various meetings and public affairs important to us all. Interested parties will see it for themselves. There is nothing better than seeing events unfold with your own eyes and if I had my wish that is what would happen. If a picture speaks a thousand words, how many does video offer?

If video of public meetings, such as City Council, were brought to us, The Hound would evolve into fostering ideas and attempt to ask appropriate questions about area happenings. The viewership of this blog and other communication outlets would steer the conversation. These opinions would then help local government shape policy to better fit the needs of the constituents it represents.

Society is changing whether we like it or not. We would be better off to try and shape that change, than to sit back and let it randomly change us. I have seen a groundswell of support over this Google issue, with over 1,800 people signing onto the Woogle Facebook page in 3 days. This shows that people will mobilize and rally when they feel an issue is important enough. We must utilize the momentum we see here by rallying the public towards participation in our community's transformative process.

Even if we aren't able to land this Google deal, this mobilization of public interest and awareness needs to be built upon. With all of us working together towards creating excellence in Hickory, we can't help but begin to move in a positive direction.