CONSIDER this. My 80 year-old dad still walks to the local store to buy his paper where he bends the ear of the 'corner boys' about daily affairs. My dad's experience of news is social in nature. News reflects and refracts what he considers to be popular or important, informs his public discourse and is consumed and shared socially. Newspaper execs who understand the social value of news position their titles through targeted marketing and promotion. Alas, the same SA papers miss the plot when it comes to social marketing online.

During 2006 students of the NML were required to choose from a pre-determined list of NGOs supplied by the Centre for Social Development (CSD). The NGO then became their ‘client’ for the duration of the course. Students liaised with a contact person from the organisation, and helped gather information to determine their particular needs before building a website and conducting training for long-term sustainability.

The final websites for the six organisations can be viewed by clicking on the links on the list below:

• Grahamstown Amasango Career School
• Eluxolweni Children's Shelter
• Grahamstown Area Distress Relief Association (GADRA)
• Grahamstown Hospice Services
• Raphael Centre for people living with AIDS
• Spirals Trust

Here is a link to a set of links for the winners of the EPpy 2007 awards (the author of the page had to spend 22 minutes compiling the list of links because the competition hosts didn't have links on their announcement page, which is a bit weird considering it is a web based award, and hyperlinking is king). What the hell is an EPpy? According to their site:

The 2007 EPpy™ Awards competition is expressly designed to honor Internet sites that are affiliated with the media industry, and especially newspapers, television networks and affiliates, radio networks, syndicated shows, local radio stations, and magazines.

Winners include sites like the New York Times, BBC News, etc.