Because often the agenda and conversations in quasi-official spaces do not cover the range or depth of peoples concerns in a neighborhood. The people that attend public meetings sometimes could be considered professional citizens. And in many communities, neighborhood residents are increasingly feeling that quasi-official groups together with official institutions are disconnected from the community. There is no single place to gain a true sense of what is happening in this neighborhood. Northeast was a place far fewer reporters had explored or even visited.
Most residents are African-American.
I can call or will run into certain people I know to talk about what we can do, and maybe one of them can talk to someone else who knows a program or a group that can help. Organizations and leadership in this kind of neighborhood tend to be fragmented. The challenge is that there are so many places and people to tap that the neighborhood becomes unmanageable. To understand this neighborhood, journalists should initially tap into as many places and people as possible. The goal should be to pinpoint a set of places and leaders that, together, can provide an authentic picture of the neighborhood.