What You’ve Said So Far About the Extra Coverage You’d Like From Us

We’ve been asking our readers what extra coverage they’d like to see from us going forward.

We’re looking to delve into a new “beat” – a new topic or geographical area. But we figured it was best to see what you all wanted, rather than to steam ahead with our own hobby horses.

Here’s an interim report on what you’ve said so far.

We’ve had more than 300 responses to our  survey. Thanks to all who have taken the time to fill it out, and those who’ve helped spread the word, too.

We’ve also held three online town halls, too. They were great little gatherings to hear, in a bit more detail, ideas for future coverage. Double thanks to those who turned up.

We started the survey with three suggested new subject beats and three suggested new geographical beats. Since then, we’ve added several more as options that have come in from readers.

Among those ideas that have come in: consumer affairs and the high cost of living; childhood and exploring the challenges, and solutions, of city-life through a child’s-eye view; family life in all its forms; business and business practices in the city; sex and gender; education; and health.

We’ve added those as options on the survey. But there are others that we haven’t.

Why? Some of the feedback we have gotten has asked for more and deeper coverage of subjects that we’re already covering: housing, planning, the environment, transport, and arts and culture.

Others have pointed to possible stories or series that they’d like, rather than ongoing coverage of a particular beat.

That feedback is massively useful. It’ll help us keep focusing our resources, while making sure we’re still covering different stories to other media. Because we don’t want to start replicating what is already out there.

So far, of  the roughly 300 responses, most have favoured adding a beat on immigration and how the immigration system impacts on those living in the city.

Second up at the moment is a beat on community safety and policing. A beat on childhood – and if it were combined with family life writ large, even more so – is polling strongly, too.

There’s been a limited response to the idea of coverage of other council areas. But we’re conscious there could be selection bias at play here.

Most of our current readers would, after all, be within the Dublin City Council area so might not be that interested in having us expand our coverage to Fingal, South Dublin, or Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown

But it’s all to play for.

We’d like to at least double the number of responses, so we’ll be keeping the survey up another week, and trying to spread the word about it even more.

If you want to weigh in, you can do so here. It will only take a couple of minutes and we’d be grateful.