A new kind of news takes flight

Jodi Schwan

January 26, 2021

The telephone put the homing pigeon out of business.

You know the pattern: One form of communication evolves, and it begins to take the place of whatever came before it.

The landline phone then became the cellphone, which evolved into the smartphone.

Messages sent by homing pigeons were then sent by telephone line and then by text message.

Similarly, a generation that grew up reading newspapers gave way to one that could choose among print or broadcast news sources.

Then came the internet, social media and … well, you know how things stand today when it comes to how we learn information and interact with news.

But I think it’s time to turn back the clock a bit if we’re going to move forward.

Come with me for a little Wikipedia-sourced trip back in time. It turns out as far back as ancient Egypt, humans used “pigeon post” to send important messages.

Homing pigeons spread word of who won the ancient Olympics. A regular pigeon messenger service was established between Baghdad and Syria by the year 1167.

In 1860, Paul Reuter – who would go on to start Reuters news agency – used a fleet of nearly 50 pigeons to deliver news and stock prices between Belgium and Germany. Reportedly faster than using a train, the pigeons gave Reuter “faster access to financial news from the Paris stock exchange.”

Well, I think it’s time the homing pigeon makes a comeback, 21st century style.

Introducing Pigeon605. The 605, of course, is a reference to the area code for where we live. The “pigeon” is a virtual one that we’re hoping you “adopt” from pigeon605.com.

Your personalized pigeon – make sure you think of a name for it – will deliver the news you choose and the news we think will be of interest to you based on what you tell us about yourself. I believe that news should be free to read whenever possible, so this will be free just like our sister site, SiouxFalls.Business.

Your news will arrive primarily by email and occasionally – when we think you’ll want to know it right away – by text message.

You’ll be able to find Pigeon605 on Facebook and on Instagram @pigeon605news, but the goal is to give you a reason you don’t have to go on social media. My hope is that we capture the best of that experience – the reason you might have been drawn to it in the first place – through our stories.

I suspect you like — or liked — social media because it can give you a look inside people’s lives and show you content you might be inspired to like or share. Think of an experience like that dropped in your email, and you’ll have a sense of what a Pigeon605 delivery will be like.

Your pigeon’s flight will be made possible because of a growing list of area business sponsors. Our advertising isn’t like traditional advertising. We don’t clutter your reading experience with ads or force you to watch 15 seconds you can’t wait to fast-forward in order to get to a video.

Our advertising instead takes the form of stories, and I’m especially excited for what those stories will be like on Pigeon605.com. They always will be clearly marked as sponsored stories, so you’ll know who supports them. There will be significantly more unpaid stories than paid ones here, and there will be no political advertising.

When it comes to local media, I don’t believe in following the crowd. So your pigeon likely won’t be delivering the kind of information you can find elsewhere. Pigeon605 won’t look like anything else being done today. It will be driven by storytelling of all kinds – from powerful stories that move you to action, to inspiring stories that remind you how much good exists in our community, to fun reads that offer you the chance to escape a bit after a rough day.

Stories like that aren’t possible without the right team. And I wouldn’t have done this without the buy-in of some of the best storytellers in Sioux Falls – those who create with words, images and video. Rosemary McCoy and I have been a two-person, full-time team for nearly four years and still are. Thanks to Rosemary’s work and belief in our shared mission, I think SiouxFalls.Business has become the clear market leader in business news, and Pigeon605 will help define what local news can be for a new generation.

Joining us is a freelance team that has never been stronger. I am excited to start sharing their work with you and confident I have the team to tackle as many stories as the business side of this venture allows me to support. That said, if you’re someone with a passion for storytelling who wants to be part of this effort, let me know at jodi@siouxfalls.business.

There’s no exact science behind the right time to launch a business venture, but I increasingly have felt the time has come for this one.

I think it’s time for content that is less polarizing and more humanizing.

That looks toward a future that doesn’t include a pandemic.

That helps us begin to heal ourselves and our community after a really tough time.

And that starts to create what local news can be for people who don’t necessarily feel connected to it today.

That’s a lot to ask out of a little digital bird.

But history has shown – and hopefully the future will prove – that the pigeon is up to the task of carrying the information we need, when we need it.

Ready to adopt your own virtual pigeon? Click here and get ready to take flight with us.

Jodi Schwan is the owner of Sioux Falls-based Align Content Studio, publisher of Pigeon605 and SiouxFalls.Business.

The Perch offers anyone the chance to share a message through Pigeon605. To suggest a column, email info@pigeon605.com.

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