Meet The Innovator: Bloc by Block News
Bloc by Block News is a member of the Social Innovation Lab’s 2020–21 Cohort. For this interview, we spoke with Kevon Paynter, Founder & CEO.
To learn more about SIL and the cohort, click here. Join them at our virtual SIL Innovators’ Showcase event on April 27th, 4–6 p.m. RSVP here.
SIL: Tell us about Bloc by Block News. What are you working on?
Bloc by Block News is a news media cooperative and civic-engagement organization helping people tap into what matters most locally.
Our flagship product is the Bloc by Block News app, a one-stop-shop for local news and information in counties, cities, towns and neighborhoods throughout Maryland. It will feature hyper-local content from vetted news publications and media outlets.
We also equip and empower users of our app with citizen reporter training that enables them to report on topics they’d like to see covered in their communities. The result is community-driven news in your pocket.
And as the news cycle continues, we will organize town halls, going beyond the headlines and facilitating resident dialogue about issues affecting neighborhoods. The outcomes are strengthened interconnectedness and learning among neighbors.
Bloc by Block News enables everyday people to participate in news and stay up-to-date on community issues as well as opens pathways to dialogue with neighbors and local leaders.
SIL: Why did you decide to start this? Where did the idea come from?
It all started in 2012, following the murder of Trayvon Martin. When a 17-year-old minority was stereotyped and killed, it was hard for me, as an African American male, not to think about my own mortality.
I watched pundits on cable news question if the Skittles in Trayvon’s pockets were colorful weapons or drugs and showed photos of him as a teenager holding up his middle finger. It was hardly the treatment that a White victim would have received. But what shocked me most was the lack of Black voices in those news conversations, meaning mainstream media painted an incomplete picture of what happened to an innocent Black boy.
The media’s role in shaping public opinion became apparent to me. I recognized the need for people of various races, genders and economic statuses to own their narratives and actively shape how their stories are portrayed.
As the news about Trayvon Martin circulated the airwaves, I trekked across the Howard University campus, where I was studying political science at the time, and changed my concentration to communications and cultural studies. I then attended Georgetown University’s journalism master’s program and numerous journalism boot camps where I built and iterated on the change I wanted to see in the media. Eight years later, many of those lessons found their way into Bloc by Block News.
SIL: What would you consider success for Bloc by Block News? How will the world be different when you are successful?
What we’re building is something greater than technology — it is a media cooperative and civic organization that connects residents to media rooted in their backyard. Our events bridge neighbor-to-neighbor connection across economic, racial and geographic divides.
In three to five years, following our successful Bloc by Block News: Maryland pilot, we’ll start expansion, incubate media co-ops, and eventually reach all 50 states. Each state would have its respective media co-op and a one-stop-shop mobile app for local information.
By constructing a media cooperative, we will form a bloc of news consumers who value and prioritize local news.
SIL: What have you accomplished so far?
We’ve accomplished an incredible amount of innovation and development in coding the mobile app. We plan to complete and ship the app to the app store by July 1.
We’ve raised money to date through non-dilutive grants from foundations that believe in our mission.
SIL: How can people get involved in supporting you in your venture?
If you’d like to support Bloc By Block News, go to www.blocbyblocknews.com and sign up to get early access to the app once it launches.
We’re also raising funds to launch the full version of our product. Become an investor and grow with us, email kevon@blocbyblocknews.com.
SIL: What have been some of the biggest challenges in scaling your venture during the pandemic?
COVID-19 has caused us to pivot to organizing for virtual town halls. It is an important part of our core mission to organize town halls that go beyond news headlines and take people to the root of the issues that affect their neighborhoods and society at large. We still believe in the role local news can play in civic learning.
Once it is safe and health guidelines permit, we hope Maryland libraries will become key partners and provide the physical space to host our town halls. Libraries are among America’s last remaining public squares, and public spaces are crucial assets for interconnectedness at a time of unprecedented physical, social and political disconnect.
SIL: What do you like most about the Baltimore entrepreneurial community? What would you like to see more of?
I love the creativity and dedication entrepreneurs from Baltimore have for the city. Baltimore entrepreneurs are aware of the history of redlining, police brutality and other forms of racial discrimination that have plagued the city, and they design solutions with this in mind. There is a spirit, a resourcefulness, a “nobody can stop us” attitude in Baltimore, and that’s what I love the most.
I’d like to see more collaboration between the K-12 schools, adult education, and these entrepreneurs to reach more people where they are and uplift them to dream bigger while providing them resources to do so.
SIL: What advice do you have for would-be social entrepreneurs thinking about starting a venture?
My advice to would-be social entrepreneurs is to go to market, build traction or make money as soon as possible. Take Mark Cuban’s advice: “There’s never been a company that succeeded without sales. It’s not about raising money; it’s about finding customers that you can create value for and making them happy. Happy customers turn into a successful business.”
I would suggest as soon as possible that you bring your product to market. Even if it’s a small-scale version or MVP of the large vision you have. You want to make sure you have something buyers want and the best way to do that is with real-world feedback and purchases. Use human-centered design to build in the desires of the customers you aim to serve. But then work fast to bring your product to market and allow the rest to get figured out, even if that’s your legal entity. Some go to market as a specific legal entity and then become something else a little bit further down the journey. Your product should validate you have something people want and would pay for. It should be well-marketed and allow you to create momentum.
SIL: Why did you apply to SIL? What attracted you to SIL?
SIL came at a time when I didn’t know whether I had the funds or energy to continue to build my venture. When I applied to SIL, I didn’t know what to expect. I have since received five-months of world-class workshops from leading experts in innovation, strategic one-on-one guidance from the SIL director, and awesome support from fellows in the cohort. Now my venture is set to launch in July, and I wouldn’t be here, on the eve of launch, if it hadn’t been for SIL supporting me at the time it did.
Follow the work of Bloc by Block News on the web.
