The Importance of Specialist Publications
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Many successful niche journalism sites were intially start-up sites and blogs, run by a handful of people.
One example of a successful niche site is Digital Photography School.
Their speciality rests in creating content for budding photographers, and since their launch in 2006, they have grown to a community of around 846,000+ subscribers – (according to SparringMind.com)
Successes
Another example of a successful niche site is The Gardening Website.
They produce journalistic content, advice, tips and events – all relating to gardening.
There are several groups and charities that raise awareness about specific topics - such as medical conditions and endangered animals. This is one way in which hyperlocal communities can reach broader audiences. Click on the pictures below to check out their websites:
These sites are more than just specialist interest – they exist to raise awareness about global issues. However they could be considered 'hyperlocal' because they create a space for people who are interested in, or affected by the specifc topic to find out more information, and connect with others.
They may not be traditional journalism sites, but they report on specific issues and provide news to their readers, and follow the core ethos of journalism – telling important stories.
Who cares about the niche topics?
Sometimes niche sites can be of little impact outside of the audience interested in their topic. Because of this, they need to adapt a succesful business model to reach larger audiences.
According to Keywords in News & Journalism, (p55) hyperlocals are "'hyper' to the extent that it focuses on local events in such a specialized way that it effectively precludes the interest or attention of those situated outside the target community".
This can be both a hinderance and a help – because they tell specific niche stories that may not get noted by other publications, but because of the specificity of their content, they may lose out on large audience engagement.