The Impact of Publications on Networking (Part 1)

Here are a few questions for you – how do publications affect networking? Do networks affect publications? Which came first the publication or the network?

These are questions you probably hadn’t thought of, but are certainly interesting to ponder. I decided to tackle those very questions by looking at the world of political publications. I interviewed individuals from a traditional print publication and from an online publication. Also, to make this a balanced look, I interviewed individuals from both the left and right side of the political spectrum to see what their thoughts were. I think you’ll find the answers interesting.

This month I’ll share my interview with Chris Voccio. Chris is the founder of The Pennsylvania Republican and is its editor and publisher. Chris has an extensive background in print media having worked at newspapers in Rhode Island, Florida, Texas, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania.

According to Chris, The Pennsylvania Republican is an independent conservative newspaper monthly of Pennsylvania. It’s being designed to be similar to Human Events, only focused on Pennsylvania. You can learn more about the publication by visiting www.pennrepublican.com.

When I asked Chris why the publication was created, he said that there is a market for a conservative publication. He described to current state of the conservative movement as a series of movements that are very disjointed. He wants to see the publication used as a means to unify the conservative movement into one cohesive movement.

Since this is a brand new publication, I wanted to know how networking and relationships played a part in the creation of the publication. Chris said that networking "played a huge role. Networking has been indispensable to building our subscriptions for our first issue in December." Chris also mentioned that he has been tapping into online networking sites like MySpace and Meetup to generate interest in the publication.

When asked about the impact publications have on political networking, Chris said that publications have a "huge impact – they become a source of information that pull folks together." This is the very concept that Chris mentioned earlier as to why he created the publication – to use the publication as a source of information to unify a movement.

When asked about the relevance of traditional print publications, Chris acknowledged that the internet will dominate networking, but that print media will always be a strong influencer. "People are referring to newspapers for credibility and as sources of information because the one advantage print media has over internet media is the ability to develop content and make the connections necessary to report a story." As opposed to online publications, like blogs which are good at raising issues and dispersing opinions.

When I asked him about trends he saw concerning political networking, Chris said that online networking was revolutionizing politics - citing examples of Howard Dean from 2004 and Ron Paul this year, calling these examples dramatic.

Come back next month when I turn to online publications and their impact on networking. I’ll share my interview with a contributor to a well-known online publication. Stay tuned.

 

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Contact Matthew Best at MatthewB@TheNationalNetWorker.com or Post a Comment on TNNW Blog.