Week 1 of a guest blogging experiment

Kent Fischer has begun allowing guest bloggers on his beat blog for the Dallas Independent School District.

Fischer is hoping that these guest bloggers can help keep the conversation going during the slow summer months on his blog. The guest bloggers have gotten off to a strong start so far with some provocative posts.

Can they keep the momentum going? Will readers respond to guest bloggers? Will these guest posts help Fischer’s blog connect more with the community?

Those are the questions I’ll be answering in the coming weeks and months as I monitor this experiment. For now, here are a few observations:

• The guest posts are written from a much more personal perspective. Fischer is an outsider reporting on the district, but his guest bloggers are insiders sharing their personal stories. His inaugural guest bloggers are two long-time veteran teachers of the school district. They should help liven up the blog.
• Some of the topics discussed might not have come up otherwise in Fischer’s reporting. One blog post is from a former DISD employee about how his insurance premiums have gone way down since he got a job in the private sector. This might be a catalyst for an in-depth reporting piece from Fischer. Another post was from a teacher about inadequate technology in classrooms and questionable district recycling practices.
• The guest bloggers are getting comments from people on their blogs. Almost all the comments appear to be from district employees. This probably a reflection of the content. No one has really blogged from a parent perspective yet.