HappyNews.com an alternative for consumers looking to get a lift out of news

The brainchild of web-entrepreneur Byron Reese, HappyNews.com provides a daily dose of positive news stories overlooked by mainstream media.

The website, launched in July, offers inspirational stories as well as positive health, sports, business and technology news. Managing Senior Editor Patricia Meyer said part of the site's appeal is that it offers a balance to the many unhappy stories in the mainstream media.

"Our idea is not that we think people shouldn’t be told negative news," Meyer said. "People need a place to go to be reminded that people are good and there are not only negative things happening in the world."

Most of HappyNews’ stories come from the major news wires. Since automatic uploads cannot be programmed for happy stories, the news staff must manually pore through hundreds of articles for stories, Meyer said.

HappyNews also receives many of its stories from non-professional citizen journalists. In exchange for bylines, experience and a little cash deposited into a Paypal account, citizen journalists provide local news stories that are unique to the Web site.

HappyNews’ citizen journalists come from all walks of life, from grandmothers to graduate students, Meyer said. They also come from all over the globe, including countries such as Scotland, India, Croatia, Thailand, South Africa and Iraq.

To encourage writers, HappyNews holds a monthly contest in which the site honors the best of citizen journalist submissions.

The use of citizen journalism is only the start of HappyNews’ community involvement, Meyers said. This month the site unveiled a $1,000 essay contest with the topic "Why I am optimistic about the future."

HappyNews’ unique news slant has already gained coverage in several major news sources including NPR and The Washington Post. But Meyer said the best endorsement comes from teachers who distribute HappyNews’ stories to their students. Meyer has also received letters from a warden who passes out HappyNews to his inmates.

Meyer said she believes there is a journalistic value to providing happy news stories.

"It’s the responsibility of journalism to provide an accurate picture of the world," Meyer said. "Positive news keeps things in perspective."

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