Tired of the restrictions, they’ve launched new forums
UK-based indie-music zine, label and broadcaster Organ have decided to move from the confines of corporate censorship and restrictions to more open and free forums. How? Well, by launching their own free forums of course.
For now the new forums are in a trial period. My feeling is they’ll soon have the kind of free communication we all should have gotten from these social networking sites. I’m pretty sure that, for the kind of interaction they are seeking, these new forums will be the best way for them to go.
They may want to keep using the MySpace platform to promote their stuff. As a tool for back and forth communication, MySpace can be a bit clunky. But on the one-way road of spreading news in bulletins, it’s a decent tool. After all, it was in one of those posts that I found out about Organ’s new forums.
As a publisher of zines, Organ is trying–like many others–to find a balance online. And take it from someone with nearly a decade’s worth of experience trying to bridge the gap between traditional and web publishing; they’re doing it right. Publishers need to have the flexibility to try new things.
All too often with traditional publishing, long periods of planning and production leave little room for changing the process. Online however, if something doesn’t work, you simply try something new. It sounds elementary, but you’d be surprised at just how many magazine publishers, editors and executives don’t get it.
Best of luck to Organ (although I honestly think they’ll be fine).
