It has been brought to our attention that there may be concerns regarding the format of the Bates County Live web site. Yes, the site is set up in a blog format for reasons we'll discuss below. Typically a blog on the internet is a place where someone can write what they want and others may post comments saying whatever they want. However, we do not allow comments, which typically is a cause for spam, and in some cases computer viruses. The conjunction of free comments with other potential problems is a reason why a typical blog would get a bad reputation.
Here are the guidelines we live by and would like to share them with you:
1. Bates County Live does not allow comments of any sort on our web site or 'letters to the editor'.
2. Bates County Live will never sell or otherwise share email addresses without owner's consent.
3. Our overall goal is to provide immediate, accurate news from around the county. No stories are published until we believe the information is 100% correct. Further, if a mistake is made, we do correct it and publish a note regarding the correction.
4. We try to avoid 'editorializing'. Writing our personal views can be done elsewhere. Again, we aim to provide news, plain and simple on BatesCountyLive.com.
To address our choice of a blog type layout for the web page:
It is easy to quickly put our news on line. The most recent story is always first and the format allows for simple use of the search feature. Plus, it simplifies the process for those who want to receive our news by RSS feeds.
We currently use blogspot.com as a host for our site. Again, we have neutered every feature regarding comments or features that could cause spam/virus problems. blogspot.com has served its purpose well for us, however we are now preparing to move everything to a new host where we have complete control and ownership of our web site, with no dependency of another party such as blogspot. We will silently be making the transition in the very near future which will cut our ties with blogspot.com hosting and/or any reference to it.
Hopefully this will clear up concerns anyone may has regarding this matter; Bates County Live is kind of a new thing and often with new ideas come some type of concerns, which we totally understand. If you have questions, comments or concerns please feel free to contact us by email or by phone at 913-669-5848.
As an added note- Bates County Live plans to join the Missouri Press Association in an effort to add credibility, and for other reasons too. However, it may take some time to do this as we either have to be sponsored by another news entity or may qualify to join MPA after we have been in service for three years. Either way, we want to let you know that its in the works.
Sincerely,
Doug Mager
BatesCountyLive.com
