GablesHomePage.com working to engage older citizens in digital media

The Coral Gables Community Foundation is developing citizen journalism and engaging older residents in digital media through its hyper-local website for people who live and work in Coral Gables, thanks to continuing support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

The $130,000 Knight Foundation grant will support the expansion of GablesHomePage.com, which was launched in October 2009 through a prior Knight Foundation grant. GablesHomePage.com is an engaging and innovative online exchange that encourages commentary while maintaining civil discourse guidelines.

“GablesHomePage.com is an attractive and informative source of news, events, culture and commentary for people of all ages in the Coral Gables community,” said Jerry Santeiro, chairman of the Coral Gables Community Foundation. “With traditional media changing and redefining themselves, GablesHomePage.com fulfills a core need of the community – providing information in a courteous, online setting.”

Citizen journalists contribute to GablesHomePage.com by writing news, features and blogs. Reader submissions have ranged from the local high school holding a car wash to coverage of cultural events. A core mission of the project is to engage the community’s older residents as active participants in the digital conversation. Seniors have been recruited to blog and submit comments, and GablesHomePage.com has developed a video tutorial about the basics of the Internet to use in workshops starting in March.

Content is also provided through partnerships with the University of Miami School of Communication, the Miami Hurricane student newspaper and The Miami Herald, as well as GablesHomePage.com staff.

The Coral Gables Community Foundation is among 24 foundations nationwide funded in 2010 through the Knight Community Information Challenge, a five-year, $24 million initiative to help community and place-based foundations find creative ways to use new media and technology to keep residents informed and engaged.

“Information is as important to a thriving democracy as clean air, jobs and schools. As leaders, local foundations are taking the initiative to meet those information needs,” said Trabian Shorters, Knight Foundation’s vice president for communities, who leads the challenge. “This project and others like it help ensure that everyone has the information necessary to make decisions about their governments and their lives.”

The latest Knight Foundation grant provides $65,000 to support GablesHomePage.com in 2010 and $65,000 in 2011, to be matched with cash and in-kind support from the Coral Gables Community Foundation. Additional revenue is derived from advertising and sponsorships on the site.

About Coral Gables Community Foundation
Founded in September 1991, the Coral Gables Community Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization that fosters programs and initiatives that enhance the quality of life for people living or working in Coral Gables. For more, visit www.gablesfoundation.org.

About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation advances journalism in the digital age and invests in the vitality of communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. Knight Foundation focuses on projects that promote informed, engaged communities and lead to transformational change. For more information, visit www.knightfoundation.org