Writer Christian Grantham has turned in his notice and on Friday, the Nashville Is Talking blog from WKRN will cease to be. I hate to see NiT go, having been a fan from the beginning of the work writer Brittney Gilbert originated for NiT. For some years, everyone was talking about NiT. I hosted the site on weekends many times while Gilbert was in charge and it was just an amazing experience.
Amazing because there was more to it than just copying links to other TN blogs - I discovered many writers and bloggers whose unique voice made me a constant reader; also I learned how good Gilbert was at her job, how hard she worked to cultivate a community of readers and writers.
WKRN allowed the blog to flourish for a while, not content to simply focus on politics or pop culture, but not surprisingly, Gilbert left Nashville to head a blog for the CBS affiliate in San Francisco. And also not surprisingly, NiT floundered a bit, until Grantham took control and blended the blogging world reviews with other growing social media trends via Twitter and Facebook and through a very user-friendly form where content could be easily uploaded to the site.
As Jack Lail at the KNS says - NiT was a most innovative step for television station, an innovative step into the online world, and hopes remain that innovation continues in Tennessee despite the closing down of NiT.
