Citizen and community news
The Odessan keeps an eye on digital, but depends on print
When she was a girl, Betty Spaar slept on newsprint. She found this was the best option when her parents brought her to the office at night. Her father was a linotype operator during the Great Depression. Today, Betty is the owner of The Odessan, a weekly paper in Lafayette County, Missouri. She represents the … Continued
How to make money on digital: The answer is still elusive
The main story that came out of my first stop on the Potter Listening Tour (#potterlisten) is that a small paper can achieve significant success in building a digital audience. However, figuring out how to make money from that achievement is still a tough task. The Houston Herald serves more than 25,000 people in Texas … Continued
Houston Herald: Weekly in print, daily online
When something newsworthy happens in Houston, Missouri, residents expect their local weekly paper to tell them about it — now. “If people hear sirens,” says Publisher Brad Gentry, “they expect us to have the story.” That’s the way the Houston Herald likes it. When its reporters learn of an event, the Herald sends out a … Continued
Small-town paper wish list: Time-efficient means to analyze and implement innovations
What Houston (Mo.) Herald folks want from the Potter Conferences was something of a surprise. Publisher Brad Gentry and his team aren’t shy about dedicating resources to digital innovation although they want to do it in the most cost-efficient way. But with only eight employees to serve 25,000-plus souls in Texas County, they’re spread thin. … Continued
Potter listening tour of community newspapers begins this month
Walter B. Potter Jr. — donor of the Missouri School of Journalism’s Walter B. Potter Fund for Innovation in Local Journalism — will be visiting community newspapers in Missouri this month and next as part of what’s known informally as The Potter Listening Tour. The tour name is inspired by trips politicians sometimes take to … Continued
Futures Lab update 84: Engagement using text messages, and corrections via social media
This week we learn about a platform for engaging with audiences via text messages, and we explore how to handle corrections to social media posts. PART 1: Groundsource A new platform called Groundsource seeks to help newsrooms interact with their communities outside the confines of smartphones and social media, instead relying on more basic text … Continued
Underserved health beat leads fellow to create niche news network
When traditional news organizations begin laying off beat reporters, crucial community coverage can take a hit. Health is one beat that is underserved in almost every community. People want to understand why so much money is spent on healthcare every year and why there are so many health problems in communities, said Jane Stevens, ACESTooHigh.com … Continued
2012: What we know now on building public trust, raising money and a free press
Was 2012 prosperous for publishers? The four-part series continues, with this third installment offering key lessons from three well-respected practitioners known for thinking outside the box. Mike Fancher, veteran news business strategist and 2008–2009 Reynolds Fellow; Lila LaHood, director of operations and development at San Francisco Public Press; and Keith Hammonds, director of Ashoka’s Knowledge … Continued
WellCommons: Revolution under the radar
Last week, WellCommons.com, a local health news site, part of the Lawrence Journal-World in Lawrence, KS, won Editor & Publisher’s EPPY award for “Best Community Service on a Media-Affiliated Website with under 250,000 unique monthly visitors”. Thank you, judges! Since there wasn’t an article about the winners, just a list, I’ll explain why we nominated … Continued
Block by Block: Imagining the sequel(s)
The online community news leaders and their shared passion for local news was the most impressive part of Block by Block: Community News Summit 2010. More impressive — and challenging — is where local editors and publishers take it from here. A big tip of the hat to online publishers, including Susan Mernit, Andre Natta … Continued