Raise the Hammer

Very interesting article and some great points raised in some of the posts above. Also glad to see the CBC is taking notice of some of the feedback (i.e. Fred Youngs comment). Here are some of my personal observations/suggestions:

PROS / EXAMPLES OF THE GOOD THINGS
- Simply the fact the CBC is here is a great thing as it adds to the Hamilton media landscape
- Paul Wilson's columns are fantastic to read
- Getting Hamilton "plugged" into the national CBC network (i.e. live hits on James Street North during Supercrawl, having some stories on the National based on Hamilton individuals, etc.)
- 5 Things To Do, come across these articles on Saturday and Sunday, sometimes they provide some good ideas on things to do
- Locating the office on James Street North and that it is open on Art Crawl
- Doing positive stories, not always "doom and gloom" news

CONS / OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
- Take out the map! I scroll past it every time and do not use it
- "Beat the Traffic" / Latest Traffic Update, I do not find this too useful. Seeing a 4 minute delay on such a long segment of road isn't beneficial. If there was a way to post accidents under the traffic update, this could let people know which intersections to avoid and they can alter their drive
- Under Commute, capture updates about delays in transit (i.e. GO Transit, HSR, etc.)
- Given Hamilton is a thriving Arts and Culture scene, there should be an Arts and Culture / Entertainment section on the CBC Hamilton web site with news coverage of it
- Multimedia seems to have tapered off from the web site, at the beginning there were interviews with individuals at the CBC Hamilton office, from events, etc. but rarely do I see video or audio in news stories right now. Doing interviews in studio, podcasts, live streaming, etc. would be great enhancements
- Coverage seems to be focused on James Street and the lower city Hamilton, which isn't bad to me as a Downtown resident. However, given Hamilton is so vast, there should be way more stories and advertising of community events from Flamborough, Ancaster, Dundas, Mount Hope/Glanbrook, Binbrook, Stoney Creek, Winona, Hamilton Mountain.
- Coverage under "Local Economy" should be more focused on new small businesses or highlighting successful local businesses, BIAs, etc. (i.e. looking at the stories listed there right now, lots of coverage for Lion's Lair, which is a good event, but it is disproportionate)

I realize this is hard to do with a small contingent of staff, but think if the approach is changed to reflect these suggestions and the other constructive suggestions listed in the above comments, it would result in a much better CBC Hamilton. I truly wish nothing but the best for CBC Hamilton and want to see it become a thriving institution!