In addition to disrespecting Bob Healey, ditching most actual local news, and failing to discipline its commenters, Patch continues to baffle.
A major flaw seems to be in the bones of the entire Patch concept of territory and communities.
How, for example, can Baldwin-Whitehall be construed as a cohesive, homogeneous "patch" of homes, businesses, schools and government agencies?
Find out what's happening in Baldwin-Whitehallwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
How is it that Upper St. Clair and Peters each are free-standing Patches but there's nothing for West Mifflin? Could it be high-income demographics? Sewickley, it's worth noting, also is its own patch.
What to make of Dormont-Brookline Patch -- one half a Pittsburgh neighborhood and the other half a suburban borough?
Find out what's happening in Baldwin-Whitehallwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
It wasn't so long ago -- a matter of months, actually -- that Patch paid professional writers and editors to canvass the territory and write news stories of some depth and detail. The theme then was "hyper-local news," a fancy way of saying coverage of newsworthy occurrences in your backyard. That's gone.
For those who care, who saw Patch as a new and innovative form of media that could touch people where they live, the disappointment is severe.
As it unrolls and unravels, it's becoming clear that Patch is -- and has been from the outset -- a news-pretending scheme by corporate sharpies to build something attractive, hook a local constituency, then rip out the guts of the beast, hoping that advertisers and unpaid bloggers and boarders will continue their habits and fill the website.
The apparent genius of the scheme is that it seems to be working.
What does Patch Corporate have to say for itself? Here you go:
"Patch reports on everything you need to know about your town, from local government to school news to what to do with your family this weekend. And your local Patch makes it easy for you and your neighbors to connect and post your news and events too. All of this, plus comprehensive listings of local restaurants and shops, home improvement services and businesses, events, and more – all in one place – in over 1,000 communities and counting."
Note that that's "everything" with a small "e."
