June 2012 Colorado Editor

editor colorado

Official publication of the Colorado Press Association / coloradopressassociation.com / Vol. LXXXIII, No. 6

weighty issue

Inside: Silverton newspaper gets its historic marker.

PAGE 2

June 2012

legislative roundup

Unified start, but testy end to session

Getting the lead out in Leadville 200 of town’s residents weigh in and shed 2,400 pounds in community weight-loss challenge

By Claire Martin The Denver Post LEADVILLE — People in this scrappy mountain town are delighted to be a little less substantial than they were in January — 2,357.2 pounds less substantial, to be precise.

Nearly 200 people initially signed up in January when the Leadville Herald Democrat, the local newspaper, announced it was sponsoring Get the Lead Out, a community weight-loss challenge. The competition founder, Herald Democrat advertising director Karen Rinehart, was stunned at the response.

“We were hoping for 60 people,” she said.

Instead, 196 people, all in teams of four or more, registered for the 16-week competition. The mayor and his wife signed up, along with the city clerk and three members of the City Council. Teachers from the local schools formed teams. In a town where Anglos and Latinos often selfsegregate, Get the Lead Out drew people from both communities.

LEADVILLE on page 8

postal issue

NNA opposes USPS plan to divert newspaper ads to aggregator The National Newspaper Association today added its voice of firm opposition to that of other newspaper organizations in opposing a plan by the U.S. Postal Service to intentionally divert advertising from newspapers to national advertising aggregator Valassis Inc. NNA’s comments were directed to the Postal Regulatory Commission, which is considering a proposed Negotiated Service Agreement between USPS and Valassis that would provide 20 percent to 34 percent postage rebates to Valassis if it produces one million new pieces of mail within 12 months after the agreement is implemented.

The target for this new business is POSTAL on page 4

Local Media Foundation 2012 West Coast Innovation Mission attendees spent a day at the Googleplex in Mountain View, CA. The mission, intended to give newspaper executives insight into some of the most innovative media and technology companies in the United States and Canada, included 20 executives from around the world.

Innovation A story that begins at the plate

In a continuing effort to gain addi• Social media and digital innovational insight into positioning Colorado tion strategies are key to engaging newspapers to compete in the digital readers, driving future revenue and age, the Colorado Press Association maintaining audience. Travis Mayfield, Board showed tremendous foresight director of digital social strategy at with eyes on the future by deciding to Fisher Interactive Network (@travissend me to the 2012 West Coast Innomayfield) in Seattle, encouraged our vation Mission, a training opportunity organizations to allow each individual through the Local Media Foundation. within a newspaper company to alThe mission included visits to some samantha low their own personalities to shine of the world’s most successful technoljohnston through on Facebook and Twitter. ogy companies and media houses. The Social media training is a drumbeat, agenda exposed me to some of the best according to Mayfield, and it isn’t for cpa executive and most innovative minds in media everyone. Allow employees to play in director and technology. the space where they are comfortable, The following are points I believe but help them develop their voice and most relevant to the CPA membership and gather a following.

Colorado media outlets: INNOVATION on page 4

The 2012 Colorado General Assembly session began with a unified bipartisan message of the need to jumpstart Colorado’s economy and create jobs and ended with nasty partisan rhetoric over a failed measure to recognize civil unions and the first special session since 2006.

The fact that Colorado’s legislature was under split control with Democrats holding a 20-15 advantage in the Senate while the House was under a narrow 33-32 Republican majority created both a tense election year environment and an effective checks and balance system. A variety of proposals that were closely identified with one party passed the first house only to be quickly dispatched in the other body.

Improved revenues allowed for a relatively non-contentious budget process. The legislature was able to restore the senior property tax exemption and maintain state support to local school districts at the current level.

There were significant bipartisan successes, most notably a proposed constitutional amendment that has been referred to voters in November to update Colorado’s personnel system. Other significant successes included a comprehensive proposal to address early literacy, a revamp of the Colorado Energy Office and legislation to fix the Colorado Benefits Management System, the long maligned computer system to provide public assistance.

The last week of the regular session reached a crisis point over legislation to recognize civil unions.

The bill passed the Senate and the House Judiciary, Finance and Appropriations Committees with one Republican joining Democrats in each committee to allow the bill to pass each committee by one vote.

On the next to last day of the session, the civil unions bill, along with dozens of other Senate bills that had not passed the Senate and been introduced in the House until the closing days of the session, died on the calendar after majority Republicans put the House into recess when Democrats attempted to force action on the civil unions bill.

A number of the issues that were lost on the calendar were salvaged through amendments to other bills on the last day of the regular session.

Gov. John Hickenlooper called for a SESSION on page 6

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colorado editor

June 2012

Ensslin on hand to unveil marker colorado editor ISSN #162-0010 USPS # 0122-940 Vol. LXXXIII, Issue 6 June 2012 Colorado Editor is the official publication of the Colorado Press Association and is published monthly at 1336 Glenarm Place.

Denver, CO 80204-2115 p: 303-571-5117 f: 303-571-1803 coloradopressassociation.com

Subscription rate: $10 per year, $1 single copy Staff Samantha Johnston Publisher/Executive Director sjohnston@colopress.net Brian Clark Design Editor Board of Directors OFFICERS President Brenda Brandt The Holyoke Enterprise bbholent@chase3000.com Vice President Bryce Jacobson Craig Daily Press bjacobson@craigdailypress.com Treasurer Terri House The Pagosa Springs SUN terri@pagosasun.com Secretary Keith Cerny Alamosa Valley Courier krcemail@aol.com DIRECTORS Mark Drudge Cortez Journal mdrudge@cortezjournal.com Bart Smith The Greeley Tribune bsmith@greeleytribune.com Jane Rawlings The Pueblo Chieftain janer@chieftain.com Laurena Mayne Davis The Daily Sentinel laurena.davis@gjsentinel.com David McClain Sterling Journal-Advocate dmcclain@journal-advocate.com Paula Murphy Trinidad Times Independent paulamurphy@ratonrange.com Curtis Hubbard The Denver Post chubbard@denverpost.com Periodical postage paid at Denver, CO 80202.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Colorado Editor 1336 Glenarm Place Denver, CO 80204-2115

Newspaper honored for its longevity and community support

The historical marker for the Silverton Standard & the Miner newspaper was unveiled and dedicated May 5, in a celebration attended by about 100 people.

The marker was presented to the Standard by the Society of Professional Journalists, making the Silverton Standard the only Colorado newspaper to receive such a designation.

SPJ President John Ensslin was on hand to unveil the marker.

“I told the (SPJ) Board, ‘You’ve got to vote for this,’” Ensslin said.

Ensslin, a reporter for The Bergen (N.J.) Record, said his friends found it puzzling that he would be traveling to Silverton to stay only a couple of hours for the ceremony.

“But this is the most special thing I’m doing for a long time,” Ensslin said.

“When I think of what the pioneers did to start this paper and keep

Society of Professional Journalists president John Ensslin presented San Juan County Historical Society chairman Bev Rich and Silverton Standard & the Miner editor, Mark Esper, with the SPJ historical marker on May 5.

it going, it just does my heart good.

“The real reason we presented you with this award is the unbreakable bond between the community and this newspaper,” Ensslin said.

Bev Rich, chairman of the San Juan County Historical Society, which acquired the newspaper in 2009, said the historical society is proud to have

taken on the project to save the historic newspaper, which was facing possible closure at that time.

“I can’t think of anything the historical society has done that’s more important,” Rich said. “How thankful we are to have a newspaper.”

Silverton Mayor Chris Tookey also spoke at the dedication ceremony.

“We’re just so excited that everybody got together and somehow kept our newspaper alive,” Tookey said.

County Board Chairman Ernie Kuhlman noted that the Standard & the Miner is the only official newspaper the county has ever had.

“And hopefully it will remain so,” Kuhlman said. “We appreciate very much the efforts put into saving the Silverton Standard & the Miner.”

Mark Esper, editor and publisher of the Standard & the Miner, recounted some of the hardships faced by operators of the newspaper since its founding in 1875.

He expressed thanks for the newspaper pioneers and all past editors and publishers who managed to keep the newspaper afloat. And he thanked the historical society for stepping in to save the Standard in its time of need.

“Most of all I want to thank the community,” Esper said. “Without overwhelming community support this newspaper could not survive.

“I don’t want to be the last editor of the Silverton Standard,” Esper told the crowd. “Please don’t let that happen.”

Numbers Point Up Latest numbers boost confidence for papers of all sizes Latest figures boost confidence of newspapers of all sizes

It’s been an interestin front of me, but I can’t Kevin Slimpfriend in ing mix of material that remember a single has ended up in my inbox college that subscribed to Institute of today. A story on National a newspaper when I was in Newspaper Technology Public Radio’s website school. I’dkevin@kevinslimp.com love to know how reports that 23 percent of these figures correspond to Americans age 18-24 read the numbers 20 or 30mix been an 10, interesting a PRINTED newspaper years ago. of material that has ended yesterday. Not an online I received email fromA up in myaninbox today. edition of The New York TVNational News Check this mornstory on Public Radio’s website Times or an iPad edition included of thatthat 23 percent of lots Americans kevin reportsing read a PRINTED newspaper of a magazine. 24 percent information about TV news slimp age 18-24 yesterday.

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people – thatinis, in the 21stbut century, and figures front of me, I can’t the dominant nineteenth-century remember a single friend in college that journalistic institution, newspapers, subscribed to a newspaper when I was might beat I’d thelove dominant in school. to know twentiethhow these century institution,toTV, the 10, figures correspond the at numbers premium part of its own game.”

20 or 30 years ago.

And this headline theNews May I received an email from from TV 1,Check 2012 issue of ADWEEK addedlots this morning that included more kindle to the flames, “Newsof information about TV news around papers See Gain Daily, Sunday the United States.inWhat caught my eye Circ: Thanks to paywall, daily was the lead story, “Papers‘NYT’ Offering More And soars Better 73 Video News.” circulation percent. ” TheThe story, found at tvnewscheck.

Yes, New York Times is docom, howtheir newspapers are creating ing welltells with online edition. video on is pardoing with, well and many times But print of late, as better than, TV websites. well.

According to writer Diana MarszaThe infamous website newspalek, “In fact, some ofreports the newspapers’ perdeathwatch.com that 14 video content is so goodhave thatclosed it has U.S. daily newspapers beaten material produced by than TV news since 2007.

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Please check my math.

I century institution, TV, at the premium was by leaving in the partbeing of its generous own game.” dying papers on the watch And this headline death from the Maylist 1,

2012 issue of ADWEEK added more kindle to the flames, “Newspapers See Gain in Daily, Sunday Circ: Thanks to paywall, ‘NYT’ daily circulation soars 73 percent.”

Yes, The New York Times is doing well with their online edition. But print is doing well of late, as well.

The infamous website newspaperdeathwatch.com reports that 14

Audit Burea of Circulation March 31, 2012 report

U.S. daily newspapers have closed since

2007.

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But accordnewspapers held steady or showed ing to Wikipedia, there were 1,457 daily an increase in the circulation over newspapers the U.S. 14 of the past teninyears, andinI’2007. d say If things those look closed, that would be a decrease don’t nearly as gloomy as many of less than 1 percent.

Please check my would like for us to believe. math. I was being generous by leaving in And why do they want us to the dying papers on the death watch list believe that the newspaper business that weren’t actually in the United States. is within – what is it now, 6? – years Add this to a non-scientific survey of its certain demise? You’ll have to conducted by the National Newspaper ask them that. I don’t believe it for a Association this year that indicates close second. to half (46 percent) of respondents at community newspapers held steady or showed an increase in the circulation over the past ten years, and I’d say things don’t look nearly as gloomy as many would like for us to believe.

And why do they want us to believe that the newspaper business is within what is it now, 6? - years of its certain demise? You’ll have to ask them that. I don’t believe it for a second.

The Holyoke

Enterprise

Community Newspaper covering Phillips County in NE Colorado

Full-Service Commercial Printing 970-854-2811•holyokeenterprise.com

colorado editor

June 2012

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news in brief Harrop joins MetroWest as managing editor MetroWest Newspapers announced May 7 that Christopher Harrop has joined the company as managing editor of the company’s four community newspapers: The Brighton Standard Blade, the Commerce City Sentinel, the Carbon Valley Farmer & Miner and the Fort Lupton Press.

Harrop, 29, Harrop joins MetroWest after a stint as an editor on the YourHub team at The Denver Post. Previously, he was senior assistant editor at Aurora Media Group, publisher of The Aurora Sentinel, The Buckley Guardian and Life Science Aurora.

He replaces Kevin Denke, who left MetroWest in April to serve as the public information officer for Brighton 27J School District.

“To be back in a community newsroom is huge for me,” Harrop said. “I’m excited to connect with this community and help our team of journalists serve our readers better.”

Harrop began his career in journalism in April 1999 with freelance assignments at The Kansas City Star.

He later served as managing editor of the Collegian newspaper at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan., where he received his bachelor degree in history.

Harrop, an Oklahoma native who moved around frequently as “an Army brat,” moved to Colorado in 2005 and spent more than a year as a copy editor and designer at Mile High Newspapers in Golden before moving on to The Aurora Sentinel in November 2006, where he served as night news editor before being promoted to senior assistant editor in 2010.

“To me, community news is the job I’ve always wanted to do,” Harrop said. “There are hundreds of places for you to get the ‘big’ stories on the state, national and global level. But often the biggest stories are the ones only the local paper can tell properly.”

To reach him with comments and questions, email charrop@ metrowestnewspapers.com or call 303-65-2522, ext. 225. You can also follow @MetroEditor on Twitter for news and updates from the community.

Herald Democrat bids farewell to longtime reporter Marcia Martinek Herald Editor A big change is coming at the Herald Democrat. For those few who don’t know (and I still trust in the efficacy of the Leadville grapevine), Ann Wibbenmeyer, Herald reporter, is leaving. Her last day was

Denver VOICE: A newspaper and instrument of hope for homeless

By Diana Kurniawan Denver VOICE volunteer writer Denver, one of the growing metropolises in the U.S., is no stranger to poverty and homelessness.

This year’s Point-In-Time study, conducted by Metro Denver Homeless Initiative on one cold, January night, counted 12,605 homeless men, women and children.

The city needs a solution.

Or a number of solutions.

One is to provide jobs for the homeless to sustain a stable income to help with basic necessities.

The Denver VOICE, an independent nonprofit newspaper covering Metro Denver, is one of them. The street paper, published to shine a light on the issues of homelessness, provides a means for people living on the streets or just barely making rent to earn an income.

It started in 1997 as a newspaper by the homeless for the homeless. After publishing sporadically, it ceased publication in 2006.

But a year later, the paper was revived by Rick Barnes, a businessman and philanthropist.

What began as a specialized publishing in 1997, became a publication highlighting the issues of homelessness for the

general public, with a program that is more supportive of the people selling it — helping them improve their selling skills and find resources to move beyond life on the streets.

And the VOICE isn’t the only one.

The Denver street paper is a member of a growing industry and two associations — the International Network of Street Papers (INSP) and the North American Street Newspaper Association (NASNA), which support street papers around the world with collaborative conferences and online support.

Reading the Denver VOICE, readers get a varied dose of local news as well as pieces written by the homeless. This writing opportunity (for which they are paid) provides the individual the chance to creatively portray their interpretations on their personal experiences in life.

Poetry, essays and other creative writings have been featured by the Denver VOICE, written by the homeless for the public.

The Denver VOICE’s mission is to facilitate a dialogue, addressing the roots of homelessness by telling stories of people whose lives are impacted by poverty and homelessness. But beyond that, those that sell the paper make the real connections, and start the real dialogues, with their customers,

who become regular supporters of the individuals and sometimes even friends.

The Denver VOICE vendor program is critical to its goal, and is a source of income for those who are in progress to work their way out of homelessness. The individuals that sell the VOICE purchase papers for 50-cents and sell it for a suggested $2 donation.

“Denver VOICE’s vendor program gave me the chance to pay for my storage bill and some simple needs,” said Dionne Gilbert, who lived on 16th Street Mall after leaving a domestic violence situation. She’ll be vending the VOICE for a year come July, and now lives in an apartment off Federal.

Along with the vendor program incentive, Denver VOICE collaborates with the District 6 Police Department and the Downtown Denver Partnership (DDP) to train vendors in customer service, sales education and communication.

The 2010 Denver VOICE Report data showed that of those living in housing after vending the VOICE, 48 percent reported using money from vending to completely pay for their rent or co-pay rent, and 91 percent reported that they paid for food, sundries and living supplies with money from vending the VOICE.

How can you help?

The Denver VOICE is looking for volunteers to help with the vendor program, marketing and editorial, and you can donate items or funding by contacting Kristin at Kristin@denvervoice.org or visiting www.denvervoice.org/donate.

Friday, May 19.

Ann started with the newspaper in December 2004, not long after her graduation from Northern Colorado University, which means her Wibbenmeyer tenure is more than seven years.

During this period of time, she has been involved in any number of stories. I’m not sure which ones she will remember best, but I’m guessing the list will include: the synagogue fire, the Aspen Leaf fire, the Great Mine Drainage Tunnel debacle, the Mt. Elbert helicopter crash, the career-fair tasting incident, the night the hospital board fired the hospital administrator and two board members walked out, and the tragic graduation-night accident where two young Leadvillites were killed.

I know she will remember for sure the night when we both waited

downtown in the cold for Nick Palmer to come home from the Iraq War for the last time.

Add to that untold numbers of city council, commissioner and school board meetings, and races – can’t forget the races. That’s just for starters. Things in Leadville are seldom dull.

Ann is a Leadville native, and it’s somewhat unusual to have a reporter with such a long tenure in the community she writes about.

When she first expressed interest in the job, her dad was running for county commissioner and I had to tell her that if he were elected, she couldn’t have the position due to a conflict of interest.

That didn’t happen, but I expect that she has found her long association with the community both a blessing and sometimes a curse.

She has been in a position to gather information from a number of sources – a good thing. But sometimes these same sources have made it more difficult. When people have known a person since

third grade, they tend to take things personally when that reporter is just trying to do her job.

For example, there’s one individual who still calls from another town and leaves phone messages complaining that Ann and the newspaper have ruined her life. It seems this individual did something incredibly stupid, got caught, and Ann wrote the story.

The life of a reporter includes many similar incidents where someone takes pot shots at the messenger. We’re guessing this is something that Ann won’t miss.

As editor, what I will miss most are our often-lengthy conversations on these topics: Is it fair? Is it accurate? Is it consistent with what we have done in the past?

Ann has been a volunteer with Young Life for a number of years, and I have valued her rapport with the Lake County High School students. In fact, once she’s gone, we may be emailing her photos asking, “Do you know this kid?”

Ann is leaving the newspaper

but not leaving Leadville, so she will become one of the Herald alums around town. As far as her future plans are concerned, you’ll have to ask her, but we all certainly wish her well.

Our new reporters started Monday, May 21. But that’s another story for another time.

Reprinted with permission from the May 17, 2012 edition of the Herald Democrat.

New sports reporter on board for the Craig Daily Press Craig Daily Press Staff There’s a new face in the newsroom at the Craig Daily Press.

Nathan Waggenspack, 22, began Thursday as the newspaper’s sports reporter, responsible for covering Moffat County School District athletics and local sports, Waggenspack clubs and community events.

Waggenspack graduated in 2011 from the University of Dayton in Ohio with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and has worked as a news reporter for the Dayton Daily News.

The Kettering, Ohio, native said he’s excited to work in Moffat County.

“I’m looking forward to working with sports again and also with high school kids,” he said. “The enthusiasm and passion they have for their sports makes my job a lot more enjoyable.”

Daily Press Editor Joshua Roberts said Waggenspack was the clear choice for the position, which generated interest from candidates around the country.

“We had 16 months with a great sports reporter in Josh Gordon, and while we were happy he was able to move on to the next phase in his career, we were sad to see him go,” Roberts said. “Nathan, we think, brings a lot of the same qualities Josh did. He’s a big sports fan, eager to get out and cover local athletes, and he’s a guy who just needs a chance to show what he can do.

“We have high hopes for Nathan, and we think people will enjoy his work and working with him.”

Away from the office, Waggenspack enjoys running and biking.

He is an avid fan of the Green Bay Packers, New York Mets and University of Dayton men’s basketball team.

He said he plans on exploring the outdoor recreation opportunities offered in the Yampa Valley.

“There are a lot more exciting opportunities outdoors here than there were in Ohio,” he said. “A state park in Ohio is like a below-average park here, so I’m looking forward to enjoying those places, especially Dinosaur National Monument.”

Waggenspack can be reached at 875-1795 or nwaggenspack@craigdailypress.com.

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June 2012

Plan shows favoritism to one customer, NNA says have examined the proposal and believe it would harm not only our own industry but the Postal Service’s own viability as well,” Anfinson said. “When you consider that one of the Postal Service’s obligations is to bind the nation together, you just have to shake your head at an idea like this. Here is one very bad idea that pulls us apart. NNA hopes the Postal Service has second thoughts about it and that the PRC makes it clear that special rate cuts that target the advertising markets are inherently unfair and anti-competitive.”

NNA Postal Committee Chair Max Heath joined in the NNA comments and assisted Landmark Publishing, which operates large and small newspapers, in expressing its own opposition.

“As most people know, I am the first to cheer the Postal Service when it does something right. And I am willing to criticize it when it goes off track. This idea is so far off track that I cannot imagine what postal management was thinking. It is simply a big postage giveaway that does nothing but disrupt the markets,” he said.

“The NSA could take free-standing insert business—paying regular Standard Mail carrier-route prices—from newspaper-owned shoppers and divert it to prices 20 percent to 32 percent lower, which is a lose-lose proposition for us and USPS,” said Heath. “USPS marketers fail to have any understanding of how much Standard Mail business is brought to them by newspaper customers.”

The PRC’s decision on the proposal is likely to come within two weeks. The law requires action within 45 days of the Postal Service’s filing, which was April 23, 2012.

POSTAL from Page 1 per advertising, which USPS pointedly seeks to divert to the mail. In its request, USPS said it believed private distribution services were “increasingly” attracting saturation advertising from the mailstream and that the Valassis deal is intended to bring it back.

NNA called the deal “unjust and unreasonable,” and said the Postal Service should try to get the newspaper business back rather than creating favoritism to one customer.

NNA said the proposal violates the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act, which requires the Postal Service and the PRC to take into account the effect upon the marketplace of USPS actions. In addition to being inherently unfair, NNA said, USPS failed to account for the fact that many newspaper advertising shoppers and TMC publications are in the mail at a higher rate than Valassis currently gets, let alone the discounted rates it would have under the proposal. The NSA would cause USPS to lose mail volume as newspapers leave the mail in disgust and mail revenues from mail pieces being unnecessarily discounted.

NNA President Reed Anfinson, publisher of the Swift County (MN) Monitor-News, said that although the proposal appears to target only large newspapers, in fact it will affect many newspapers of all sizes. He said reaction to the proposal within the industry was swift and negative.

“Many of us cannot figure out why the Postal Service, with which we each spend thousands of dollars each year, would want to jeopardize this relationship to chase a special deal with one customer. NNA’s postal experts

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Innovation Mission attendees from left: Rory Moulton, digital project manager for Swift Communications, David Schmall, director of digital development, Swift Communications, Inc., Joe Boydston, vice president of technology and new media, Daily Republic.

An eye toward the future INNOVATION from Page 1 • Part of each newspaper’s social media strategy should include a definition of what the newspaper’s voice is — casual, entertaining, informative, and the programming that will appear in the social strategy.

“You can’t take what’s in your core product and translate it to social media,” Mayfield said.

“You have to have a plan and then execute the plan.”

Stories must grow on all platforms and be different according to the voice of each platform.

• Identify elements likely to be shared and ensure they are shared. These elements must be interesting, and if possible, contain a social aspect. Identify such postings and make it live.

Quickly. Very quickly.

• The iPhone is one of the most valuable tools available to reporters in the field.

Any photo or video that can be sent back to the newsroom or posted online is more valuable than your competitor’s non-photo or video. * Websites and social media sites should have everything your local audience wants to read.

Newspapers have to stop being afraid to link to a competitor’s website.

Link to local sites all the time.

We want our consumers to feel like they aren’t missing anything on our website. Even if we didn’t generate the content, if our audience wants to read it, make it available to them so they know your site will give them everything they need. This eliminates a reader’s need to go elsewhere. * “You can’t take tradition and make it cool,” said Jenny Kugliin, general manager of content and social media at Fisher Interactive Network.

Fisher Interactive realized that we cannot continue to take the same content we put in print and online and rebrand it for 17 to 34 year olds. Newspapers must have content on platforms specific to the audience. Check out their product at Seattlepulp.com.

• It’s vital we have digital evangelists in our operations. People with feet on the floor spreading the digital word, making sure that digital content is spectacular and advertising sales teams understand, appreciate and sell the products. Digital will fail if there isn’t a constant drumbeat.

• There are a million and one opportunities to partner with technology companies. We should be less inclined to recreate every wheel and more inclined to forge symbiotic relationships with technology companies. We can all win in the end.

• When trying to decide which efforts your newspaper should allocate resources to “the greatest filter is to follow the money,” said Gordon Borrell, chief executive officer of Borrell & Associates. The Internet is not simply an advertising tool — it’s a utility and we have to build our businesses beyond the core business model.

• Advertisers aren’t buying eyeballs or readers anymore.

They want audience. Audience is achieved through a combination of print and digital solutions.

Local news gets traffic, but advertising content in a digital space is where audience is “leaning forward.” They’re ready to buy and on the edge of their seat.

Print advertising reaches the audience that is leaning back. Digital advertising reaches the audience leaning forward. Digital sales reps must be selling results, and results are in targeted display.

Borrell said targeted display was only 22 percent of the revenue pie in 2011, but will reach 87 percent of the pie by 2016.

• Borrell said people are 40 percent more likely to check their email than they are to go to the web. Email solutions should always be a part of your digital portfolio.

• Really cool ideas with no revenue attaché shouldn’t be part of your product portfolio.

Spending time on cool ideas with no monetary reward limits the amount of time that you will spend on revenue producers. The key to producing good content and keeping journalism alive is revenue to support the noble mission.

• “Ideas come from everywhere. Anyone can come up with a good idea, no matter where they work in the company,” said Chris Connelly, people operations at Google.

Work environments have to be conducive to conversation and idea exchange. Working in silos means you can’t benefit from what others around you are saying.

“If you give people freedom, they will amaze you,” he said.

• Adam Burnham at Digital First Media drove home the idea that audience is what we are selling and reaching.

“Sales reps should be selling audience, not products,” he said.

Advertising sales consultants are solution wizards, selling every solution that meets a client’s need, not selling the products they are most comfortable with.

Innovation is created in a space when there is time and flexibility to be creative and to think larger than today’s project or tomorrow’s newspaper.

The brightest ideas come from the ability of a great mind to work on a project of interest.

It can be small scale at conception, and once vetted, can be scaled for the market and have allocated resources.

The most interesting people I met, who have developed the best ways to monetize digital and make a real audience engagement impact haven’t been afraid to fail.

Sure, a pro forma and a business plan are important, but more important is the willingness to try everything. Inevitably, we’ll swing and miss, strike out on some things.

But, the opposite is also true: there will be major successes, home runs.

None of that’s possible, however, without first

colorado editor

June 2012

5

Friends create the Taylor Twist School newspaper started as a dream

By Betsy McLaughlin Gretchen Kowalczyk had a dream one night about starting a newspaper. She came into school the next day and shared her dream with friends Kalli Anders and Charlee Hawkins. They put their heads together and came up with The Taylor Twist, official publication of the student body at Taylor Elementary School. The fifth graders enlisted help from teacher’s aide, Ms. Cather, and with support from Principal Jennifer Morrell and a small grant from Palisade Altrusa, the newspaper took shape.

The Taylor Twist is published monthly and is done entirely onsite at Taylor Elementary, mostly during morning and lunch recess.

The girls set up the paper on the computer using Microsoft Word, then print it on the school printer.

Since the initial issue in December of 2011, the students have been writing, producing, folding and distributing about 375 copies of each issue.

Following the December rollout, there were issues printed in January, February and March and a final April/May issue is expected soon.

The paper features news about

The same photo with (a) a .5-point frame, (b) a 1-point frame, (c) a 4-point thick/thin frame and (d) a drop shadow with no frame.

Framing the photo From left, Charlee Hawkins, Gretchen Kowalczyk and Kalli Anders, fifth graders at Taylor Elementary School, showing off the latest issues of The Taylor Twist.

Taylor students and events, a ‘Mystery Employee’ of each month, and other special features such as puzzles and cartoons. They asked for New Year’s resolutions in January and are considering a feature for the final issue on 5th Grade memories.

The students installed a mailbox near the main office for suggestions, story ideas and submissions by other students or staff. They invite feedback and contributions and have added cartoons by fellow student Colby Burnham.

The pre-school and kindergar-

ten teachers each receive an issue to share with the classroom, and each student in the upper grades receives a copy.

Since the paper’s three editors will all be moving on to Mt. Garfield Middle School next year, The Taylor Twist will be looking for students to carry on the excellent work begun by Kalli, Gretchen and Charlee.

Reprinted with permission from May 17, 2012 edition of the Palisade Tribune.

With the powerful design itself isn’t too dark. In this software we have at our finexample, it’s only 50 pergertips these days, we have cent. And the offset is only many more options for most 3 points, with a shadow size design elements—even those of 5 points. we may consider minor parts I’m convinced that these of a page. four looks can work well for That’s good. most newspapers.

But with the capabilities But that powerful softthat design software gives us, ware will let you do, well... ed even those minor elements henninger things you just shouldn’t can be tweaked, tuned, do. I haven’t shown any, but twitched and twisted. here are some examples: That’s not good.

Thick, colored frames.

Take, for example, a simple eleFrames made from repeated small ment like the frame on a photo. objects, such as purple bunnies on on For most of us who have been de- Easter photo package. signing for some years, a photo frame Thick-thin frames of one color, has always been constructed from a with another color in the gap. Ex.5-point rule, as in example a in the ample, a red thick-thin combo with illustration. No big, deal: just place a green in the gap for a Christmas .5-point frame on the photo to give it photo. an edge and a bit of visual pop.

Frames made from wavy lines.

Some editors feel they really need These usages (and countless otha 1-point box (as in example b) to ers!) tend to call attention to the give their photos impact, and some- frame. But the purpose of a frame on times to help with press work. The 1 a photo is to help call attention to the point is a bit clunky, but readers don’t photo. seem to mind.

Let’s use a frame that works well...

Also acceptable (I’m using this and keep the usage consistent. look in a redesign right now) is a thick-thin combination, to give a classier look to your photos. In examED HENNINGER is an indepenple c, it’s 4 points wide, but it could be dent newspaper consultant and the a bit thinner, depending on the qual- Director of Henninger Consulting. ity of your reproduction.

Offering comprehensive newspaper One of my favorite approaches— design services including redesigns, especially for feature photos—is to workshops, staff training and evaluause a soft shadow with no frame, as tions. E-mail: edh@henningerconsultin example d. This provides a subtle, ing.com. On the web: henningerconelegant look—provided the shadow sulting.com. Phone: 803-327-3322.

cpa marketplace SMALL WEEKLY FOR SALE Small weekly in Colorado mountain community. Grosses about $120,000.

Good opportunity for young couple starting out, or older “downsized” journalists. Easy news beats. Monopoly situation.

All buildings and equipment included in sale price; you can walk in on Monday and put out a paper on Tuesday. Current owner will stick around to help with transition. Beautiful location. Price includes office building and residence. June price reduced to $230,000 from $270,000. Price reductions will continue until the paper is sold. Call 970-873-8850.

ONLINE WINTER SPORTS PUBLICATION FOR SALE An online publication focusing on the sport of snowshoeing. One print edition published in 2005. Print still a possibility with solid brand in place.

4,000 e-mail subscribers. Grosses $30,000 per year in advertising. No physical assets to acquire. Owner (and founder) will help with transition. Can be located anywhere.

Price includes full Wordpress website, brand, access to writers, and subscriber list: $210,000. Call 303-332-4993.

CRIME/COURTS REPORTER NEEDED The Greeley (Colo.) Daily Tribune

is seeking a full-time reporter to cover crime and courts in our community. We’re seeking an aggressive reporter who can post breaking news quickly to the web and then follow up with a great story for print. Job duties will include covering breaking stories involving police, fire and rescue units, as well as covering the highlights in our district and county court system. We’re a 7-days-a-week print newspaper and 24/7 web operation.

Experience is a plus but not a requirement. Do you have a passion for crime reporting? A burning desire to produce high-quality print journalism while also keeping the website fresh? A strong knowledge on how to use social media to complement your reporting and expand our newspaper’s brand? If you meet these qualifications, send your resume and cover letter to Editor Randy Bangert at rbangert@greeleytribune.com.

COPY EDITORS Seeking part-time and full-time experienced copy editors: Must have newspaper experience and know AP style. Please specify part time or full time. Flexibility to work at several offices is preferred.

Please contact Mikkel Kelly at Colorado Community News weekly newspapers: mkelly@ourcoloradonews.com.

6

colorado editor

June 2012

Legislature in review SESSION from Page 1 special session for May 14 through 16 to address civil unions and six other issues. Ultimately, four of the seven issues on the call, including civil unions, died and just three passed.

This year’s session was successful on issues of importance to newspapers. At the top of the list was the passage of House Bill 1169.

The Colorado Press Association supported the bill to overturn a flawed decision by the Colorado Court of Appeals in the case of Hendricks v. City of Fort Morgan that said governments could conduct business in a public meeting by secret ballot. CPA was also able to amend House Bill 1036, which would have made all civil and administrative investigative files confidential. The bill was amended to make all such files public as soon as investigations were closed.

CPA also participated in a series of negotiations related to access to voted ballots. The voted ballots bill was SB 155, which was one of the bills that died on the calendar as part of the civil unions discussion. The provisions of SB 155 were added to HB 1036 and approved.

CPA also supported SB 102, which repealed Colorado’s criminal libel statute and HB 1229 which clarified publication requirements for legal notices. The bills below are of interest to CPA members (Bill/ sponsors/topic): • SB 24/Harvey/Holbert/concerning residential nonprofit corporations. — The bill concerns activities of residential nonprofit corporations. It includes a provision that members don’t need to be notified of meetings where decisions will not be made. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed by governor.

• SB 30/Jahn/Liston/concerning foreclosure. — The bill contains a variety of provisions relating to foreclosure of property. It does not change anything related to the legal notice advertising requirements, but was amended to create provisions for counties to make more efforts to return excess value to homeowners through use of unclaimed property statutes. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed by governor.

• SB 31/White/Bradford/concerning federal mineral leases. — The bill concerns processes related to districts established to enter in federal mineral leases. It contains a provision that requires there to be legal notice advertising of a public hearing before such districts may be dissolved. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed by governor.

• SB 44/Guzman/Pabon/concerning theft of transit. — The bill concerns the crime of theft of transit by people who ride public transportation without paying. It was amended in the Senate Transportation Committee to automatically seal conviction records. — CPA position: Seek amendment to make sealing requests follow existing law. — Status: Amended as requested by CPA and passed legislator, awaiting action by governor.

• SB 51/Bacon/Massey/concerning school district service contracts. — The bill requires specific analysis before a school district may enter into a contract for services. It contains a provision that all service contracts by school districts must be available for public inspection

on district websites. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed legislature, awaiting action by governor.

• SB 71/Giron/Duran/concerning loan modification remedies prior to foreclosure. — The bill establishes processes that must be offered to modify loans prior to foreclosure actions. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed senate judiciary committee, postponed indefinitely by Senate Appropriations Committee.

• SB 79/S. King/Stephens/concerning Safe 2 Tell. — The bill makes modifications to the Safe 2 Tell program for students to report criminal offenses.

It maintains current confidentiality provisions. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed by governor.

• SB 84/Lambert/Swalm/concerning PERA transparency. — The bill makes information about public employment retirement accounts of elected officials and members of the governor’s cabinet public. — CPA position: Support. — Status: Postponed indefinitely by Senate Finance Committee.

• SB 101/Nicholson/Bradford/concerning local improvement districts.

—The bill establishes processes to make changes to local improvement districts. Changes must be noticed through legal notice advertising. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed Senate, House Local Government and Appropriations Committees, died on House Calendar.

• SB 102/Brophy/Nikkel/repeal criminal libel laws. — The bill repeals criminal libel. — CPA position: Support.

— Status: Signed by governor.

• SB 105/Steadman/Levy/concerning collateral consequences. — The bill concerns issues involving the consequences of being convicted of crimes. It allows sealing of petty offense and municipal convictions under the same timing and process to seal petty offense drug convictions. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed Senate, postponed indefinitely by House, State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

• SB 135/Lundberg/Murray/concerning online election night returns. — The bill provides resources to facilitate faster, statewide reporting of results on election night. — CPA position: Support. — Status: Passed State, Veterans and Military Affairs and Appropriations Committees and second reading in Senate, died on Senate calendar.

• SB 153/Morse/concerning sunshine in litigation. — The bill makes more information from on-going litigation available to the public. — CPA position: Support. — Status: Postponed indefinitely by Senate Judiciary Committee.

• SB 155/Heath/Court/concerning transparency in elections. — The bill establishes the procedures for the public to inspect voted ballots. The provisions of the bill were amended into House Bill 1036 after the bill died on the House second reading calendar.

— CPA position: Support. — Status: Passed Senate, House, State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee, died on House calendar.

• SB 164/Heath/Massey/concerning private postsecondary institutions.

— The bill addresses laws concerning private institutions of higher education.

It contains a provision that requires the Department of Higher Education to obtain and maintain records of defunct institutions and makes such records public. It also requires that records related to collection of surety to protect students’ tuition payments be public. After the bill died on the House calendar, its provisions were amended

into HB 1155. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed Senate, House, Education, Finance and Appropriations Committees, died on House calendar.

• SB 175/Carroll/Gardner/concerning court time periods by seven-day periods. — The bill makes adjustments to time periods for filing court documents so that all periods are in seven day increments so that no filings are due on weekends. It leaves all public notice requirements in place, although in a few cases, the extension requires an additional notice to be published. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed General Assembly, awaiting action by governor.

• HB 1010/Baumgardner/Giron/ concerning reissue of ditch share certificate. — The bill establishes the process to reissue a lost certificate for shares in a ditch. It contains a provision that requires public notice through legal notice advertising before the certificate can be reissued. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed by governor.

• HB 1016/Balmer/concerning ex-parte communication at the Public Utilities Commission. — The bill further defines impermissible ex-parte communication by Public Utilities Commissioners. It contains a provision stating that communications between the commissioners are public records. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Postponed indefinitely by House Transportation Committee.

• HB 1036/J. Kerr/Boyd/concerning clarification of open records. — The bill modifies an existing provision of the Open Records Act that investigatory records may be withheld to specifically include criminal, civil and administrative investigations. The bill was amended to limit its scope to investigatory files of ongoing external investigations of state agencies or concluded investigations where no action is taken. The bill was amended to include the provisions of SB 155 after SB 155 died on the House calendar. — CPA position: Monitor after amendment to narrow scope of bill. — Status: Amended as requested by CPA and passed General Assembly. Also amended in conference committee to include the provisions of SB 155. Awaiting action by governor.

• HB 1053/Gardner/Giron/concerning victim’s rights. — The bill contains a variety of provisions concerning victim’s rights. There is a provision encouraging records custodians to redact the social security numbers of victims and witnesses before releasing records. — CPA Position: Monitor. — Status: Passed General Assembly, awaiting action by governor.

• HB 1062/Barker/concerning Peace Officer Employment Protections. — The bill limits how employers may oversee and discipline peace officers. It contains a provision that a hearing involving a peace officer is closed unless the officer chooses for it to be open. — CPA position: Oppose provision that closes hearing. — Status: Amended as requested

by CPA and postponed indefinitely by House Local Government Committee.

• HB 1066/Priola/concerning OffHighway Vehicles. — The bill contains a variety of provisions related to when and how vehicles such as ATVs and snowmobiles may be operated on public roads. It contains a provision that registration and ownership records of off-highway vehicles are public records.

— CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Lost on third reading in House.

• HB 1067/McCann/Aguilar/ concerning Campaign Finance and Reporting Requirements for RTD and School Board Elections. — The bill limits campaign contributions for RTD and school board elections and establishes requirements when such contributions must be disclosed to the public through the Secretary of State. — CPA position:

Support reporting requirements. — Status: Postponed indefinitely by House, State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

• HB 1074/J. Kerr/S. King/concerning Court Access to Records of Conservators. — The bill establishes the right of courts with jurisdiction over conservator relationships access to records of the conservator. It requires the court to maintain the confidentiality of such records. — CPA position: Seek amendment to clarify that confidentiality is maintained only for records that are otherwise confidential. — Status: Amended as requested by CPA and signed by governor.

• HB 1077/Gardner/Tochtrop/ concerning investments of the Fire and Police Pension Association. — The bill establishes the right of the FPPA to keep investment strategies related to its investments confidential if FPPA can prove competitive harm. The competitive harm provision was added at CPA’s request during an interim committee hearing last fall. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed by governor.

• HB 1082/Soper/concerning Prevailing Wage on Public Works Projects.

— The bill requires prevailing wage to be paid on public works projects. It contains a provision that the Department of Labor and Employment list all violators of the law on its website.

— CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Postponed indefinitely by House Local Government Committee.

• HB 1110/Williams/Carroll/concerning Regulation of Appraisal Management Companies. — The bill adds appraisal management companies to regulation of appraisers. It contains provisions strengthening confidentiality requirements related to complaints and investigations against entities regulated in these practices. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed General Assembly, awaiting action by governor.

• HB 1118/Conti/Harvey/concerning Transparency in School Collective Bargaining. — The bill requires collective bargaining negotiations to be open to the public if school board members or school district administrators are involved. — CPA position: Support.

— Status: Passed House, postponed indefinitely by Senate, State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

• HB 1125/Ramirez/Steadman/ concerning impounded animals. — The bill address issues about requirements on animal control officials if animals are impounded. Existing public notice requirements are maintained. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed by governor.

• HB 1126/Gerou/Roberts/concerning On-Site Wastewater Treatment Systems. — The bill updates statute involving individual waste treatment systems. Existing public notice requirements are maintained. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed by governor.

— Change from last report: None.

• HB 1138/Kafalas/Hudak/concerning Poverty Impact Statements. — The bill allows for a limited number of bills to be analyzed for their impact on people in poverty. The analysis will be developed and made public at the same time as fiscal notes. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Postponed indefinitely by House, State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee. — Change from last report: None.

• HB 1148/Sonnenberg/concerning Neighborhood Revitalization Areas.

— The bill establishes the processes to establish a neighborhood revitalization area. Notice of new areas are to be made on government websites, unless there is no such website in which case legal notice advertisements are to be made in newspapers. — CPA position: Seek amendment to require notices in newspapers. — Status: Postponed

indefinitely by House Local Government Committee. — Change since last report: None.

• HB 1151/McCann/S. King/concerning human trafficking. — The bill establishes a variety of criminal penalties for human trafficking. It allows the criminal records of people who can prove that they were sold as part of a human trafficking enterprise to petition for such records to be expunged. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed General Assembly, awaiting action by governor.

— Change from last report: None.

• HB 1156/McCann/Johnston/concerning foreclosure information. — The bill makes changes to requirements about what lenders must tell property owners subject to foreclosure. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Postponed indefinitely by House Economic and Business Development Committee. — HB 1169/Gardner/Brophy/concerning secret ballots in open meetings. — The bill prohibits secret voting in public meetings except to elect leadership of public bodies. — CPA position: Support.

— Status: Signed by governor.

• HB 1209/Gardner/Carroll/concerning the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act. — The bill implements a recommendation from the Commission on Uniform State Laws on how electronic legal material is transmitted. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed

by Governor.

• HB 1224/Becker/Lambert/concerning A Consolidated Communications System Authority. — The bill creates an authority to oversee consolidation of communication systems used by law enforcement agencies throughout the state. The authority is subject to open meetings and records laws. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Signed by governor.

• HB 1229/Murray/Scheffel/concerning definition of publication. — The bill defines publication for purposes of legal notice advertising. — CPA position: Support. — Status: Signed by governor.

• HB 1243/Todd/concerning Appointments to State Boards and Commissions. — The bill requires additional outreach of vacancies for state boards and commissions. The outreach includes advertising. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Postponed indefinitely by House, State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

• HB 1251/Hullinghorst/Heath/ concerning Enterprise Zones. — The bill contains numerous provisions relating to enterprise zones including one that beneficiaries of enterprise zone credits be listed on internet. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Postponed indefinitely by House Finance Committee.

• HB 1252/Nikkel//Spence/concerning Transparency in Higher Education Finances. — The bill requires higher education institutions to make their financial information available to the public online. — CPA position: Support.

— Status: Passed House Education and Appropriations Committees, died on House calendar.

• HB 1293/Todd/K.King/concerning recall elections. — The bill concerns recall elections. It requires legal notice of all such elections. — CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed General Assembly, awaiting action by governor.

• HB 1329/Scott/Nicholson/concerning county treasurers becoming public trustees. — As introduced, the bill would have eliminated the public trustee in El Paso, Mesa and Weld counties and shift the duties to the county treasurer. It has been amended to have trustee budgets be submitted to county commissioners and to subject trustees to procurement rules and state audits.

— CPA position: Monitor. — Status: Passed General Assembly, awaiting action by governor.

colorado editor

June 2012

Business Journal gets back to roots Since 1988, the Colorado Springs Business Journal has given the Pikes Peak region its own business newspaper, operated for the first 10 years by its local founders, then since 1998 as part of the Dolan Co.’s national network of publications.

Now the Business Journal is going back to its roots.

Owners of the area’s largest locally owned media company, which includes the Colorado Springs Independent, signed an agreement Monday to buy the Business Journal, effective June 1. The acquisition includes another Dolan-owned local entity, The Transcript, a tri-weekly, public-record newspaper featuring legal notices.

The new owners also will apply to service Dolan’s contract publishing of three local military newspapers: the Fort Carson Mountaineer, Peterson (Air Force Base) Space Observer and Schriever (AFB) Sentinel. More than 68,000 local adults read these publications regularly in print, according to the latest Media Audit numbers for the local market, and thousands more online.

“Business is the most powerful institution shaping our city,” says John Weiss, publisher of the Independent and majority owner of the purchasing group. “Businesses, especially locally controlled organi-

zations, provide most of our jobs, create most of our wealth, and shape our community’s environment. We aim to publish a great business newspaper and website that will improve our community by providing timely, vibrant local information to business owners and employees, nonprofit executives and civic leaders who need to know what is really going on.”

During the transition from national to local control, Independent executive editor Ralph Routon and CEO Fran Zankowski will divide their time between both organizations. Former City Councilor John Hazlehurst will write for both the CSBJ and the Indy. He spent five years (2006 to 2011) exclusively at the Business Journal between stints as an Independent columnist. Routon will also continue his Between the Lines and End Zone columns in the Indy.

But that doesn’t mean the two newspapers will be merging their content.

“We will keep the Independent and the new publishing group physically, spiritually and legally separate,” Routon says. That includes maintaining the two newspapers’ offices, with the Independent still operating at 235 S. Nevada Ave., and the CSBJ at 31 E. Platte Ave. Zankowski and Routon will di-

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“The Local Media Association Sales Certification Course was one of the first things I did as a new employee of the Record-Journal. As a recent college graduate, I had no sales experience and this course gave me the skills I needed to launch my career. I would recommend this course to anyone looking to sharpen their sales skills.”

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rect the CSBJ during the transition, while the Indy’s general manager Carrie Simison-Bitz and managing editor Kirk Woundy assume more responsibilities at the Independent.

“The current staff at CSBJ and the military papers is rock-solid,” says Zankowski, a longtime newspaper executive who has been at the Independent since 2005 and is also co-owner of the purchasing company, known as the Publishing Corp. of Colorado Springs. “In the coming months and years we anticipate growing the current 20-person staff to publish even stronger print and online offerings.”

“We are psyched,” adds Weiss, a 1978 Colorado College graduate who co-founded the Independent 19 years ago. “Six months from now the CSBJ will be even more of a mustread.”

In a Business Journal online story, Dolan Co. president James P. Dolan said, “When John Weiss called to inquire whether the Business Journal could be acquired, at first we said no, but we thought about it and decided that CSBJ deserved a more attentive owner, possibly somebody local.”

Reprinted with permission from the May 16-22, 2012 edition of the Colorado Springs Independent.

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7

obituaries Wilma Irene Price Wilma Irene Price, 83, of Rocky Ford died Monday, May 7, 2012 peacefully at Pioneer Health Care Center. There will be no local services. There will be no viewing as cremation has been effected. Inurnment will be private at a later time.

Wilma was born July 31, 1928 in Neodesha, KS to Ralph and Evelyn Eve (Casebeer) Tucker.

She graduated from Neodesha High School and from the Wichita State University Nursing Program.

She was the widow of George Price and was previously married to Wayne Mangus; they later divorced.

She retired as a proofreader at Rocky Mountain News. She was active in the printer’s union. She attended St. Peters Catholic Church in Rocky Ford.

She is survived by sons Harold (Debra) Mangus of Olney Springs, and Gary Mangus of Denver, sisters Carol Rutherford of Cape Girardeau, MO and Mary Price of Brownsville, TX, brother Robert Tucker of Neodesha, KS, 12 grandchildren, numerous great-grandchildren and one greatgreat-grandchild.

She was preceded in death by her parents, husband, sister Nancy Johnson and brother Ralph Tucker, Jr. Arrangements are entrusted to Ford –Ustick Funeral Home. Condolences may be sent to www.fordustick. com.

Robert Armendariz Linda Navarro The Gazette Robert L. “Bob” Armendariz, who founded the bilingual newspaper Hispania News and first distributed it during an annual Cinco de Mayo celebration in Monument Valley Park in 1987, died of natural causes Wednesday at his home. He was 69.

“He went quietly yesterday evening,” son James Armendariz, who lives in California, said. He and his sister, Roberta, who lives in Scottsdale, Ariz., said services are pending and both are traveling to Colorado.

Armendariz, a military intelligence veteran, was born in Sugar City to a farming family. He had three sisters and four brothers.

Armendariz, a longtime advocate for Hispanic causes, had been head of the Colorado Springs Press Association for many years. He served on community boards including the Fine Arts Center.

The 25th anniversary edition of Hispania News is online, but hasn’t yet been printed. Bill Green, who worked with Armendariz for 24 years said “the paper is at the printer, the 25th anniversary edition, plates are shot, it just needs to be printed.” Part of the problem is that “everything is in Bob’s name,” said Green, and an estimated $2,000 was needed to pay the Pueblo Chieftain. Friends, members of the media and members of the community have been rallying all afternoon to raise the amount needed by 5 p.m. for the printer.

Plans had been to distribute the anniversary print version around southern Colorado, including the Cinco de Mayo celebration at the fairgrounds in Pueblo.

Roberta Armendariz-Madrid said

the publication of the anniversary edition is what she would want most of all and that it would have meant so much to her father.

John Henry, who knew Armendariz for 15 years and worked with him on the press association board of directors, said, “Bob truly did care about the community.” He said he and Armendariz met last week to discuss a project to place a Spanish-language tutoring series in Spanish-language newspapers across the country.

Former Mayor Lionel Rivera, vice president-investments for UBS Financial Services Inc., said, “Bob was a true champion for the business and Hispanic community. He was one of the early leaders (president) of the Colorado Springs Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. He worked tirelessly to level the playing field in Colorado Springs to help minority-owned businesses get an equitable opportunity to compete for contracts in both the public and private sector. He was a sounding board for me during my time as mayor and always gave me thoughtful advice. He energized everyone he met with his crazy sense of humor and love of Colorado Springs and Pueblo. I counted him as a good friend for these last 20-plus years and our community and my wife Lynn and I will miss him. My wife and I offer our sincere condolences to his family.”

Carmen Abeyta, who heads the local El Cinco de Mayo celebrations including Friday’s scholarship dinner and dance at the DoubleTree, said she had known Armendariz “forever and ever, a long time. Bob was everywhere, absolutely everywhere.

He was onery and sometimes could be a challenge, but it was because he was so adamant about how he felt.

Most recently, said Abeyta, Armendariz “was very supportive of our Latino Community Luncheons. He never missed one.”

The newspaper, which had felt the impact of the economic downturn for a number of years, was on a shoestring budget, Armendariz had told friends.

With the Cinco de Mayo celebrations going into full swing and the 25th anniversary of the newspaper coming out, Abeyta said, choking up, “Darn it, Bob, why didn’t you wait.”

County Public Information Officer Dave Rose wrote to his media colleagues. “We are all saddened by the passing of our friend Bob. I met him back in 1970s when he was a PIO assistant at Fort Carson. Out of the service Bob began working as a reporter/photographer at KKTV in the days of sound on film. He was there for several years before the opportunity with Hispania News.

“Bob was first with a smile and handshake, first to volunteer, first to help the new folks and first with a usually bad joke to break the ice,” Rose said. “In addition to many of us, Bob covered local news stories alongside a good many who have gone before including: Hal Tatel, Hal Kennedy, Jack Ryan,Thom Foulks, Glenn Urban, Stan Payne, Jim Gibney, Bill Walters, Bill Bruce, Gary Street and many more.”

Facebook and Twitter are filled with memories of the dedicated, often prickly, newspaperman.

8

colorado editor

June 2012

legal q & a Editor’s note: Colorado Press Association’s legal counsel Tom Kelley, Steve Zansberg, and Chris Beall, with the Denver law firm of Levine Sullivan Koch & Schulz, field questions from CPA members on First Amendment and freedom of information issues. Some of those recent questions and answers, in revised form, are listed below. If you have any questions you would like them to address, please submit them to CPA Executive Director Samantha Johnston at sjohnston@colopress.net.

Question: Is there a requirement that the town counsel tape a work session meeting? The town manager says no, although the sessions used to be taped. They provide public notice for the work sessions but no votes are taken. However, they discuss things they are going to vote on. The argument from the town is that the work sessions are “administrative” and don’t have to be taped. Is that correct?

Answer: The town is correct.

But not for the reason given, that is not because the town is labeling its meeting as a “work session.” Under the Colorado Open Meetings Law (“COML”), there is only kind of meeting for which the town must make an electronic recording, and that is solely an executive session. There is no requirement to make an electronic recording of a public meeting, whether it is a “regular,” “special,” or “work session” meeting.

In fact, none of the latter distinctions -- i.e., between a “regular,” “special,” or “work session” – have any significance under the law. A gathering is subject to the COML the instant that three members, or a quorum, of a local public body gather to discuss public business within the jurisdiction of their public

body. That gathering is a “meeting,” regardless of whether the local public body wants to call it a “regular,” “special,” or “work session” meeting.

And, because it is a “meeting,” advance public notice of the meeting must be given.

and he was trusting that the administrator. My questions are: Is the meeting legal? Can they discuss the possible replacement in an executive session and then announce the appointment publicly?

If during that meeting, the public body then decides it wants to go into “executive session,” that is, to close the meeting to the public, then and only then must the public body ensure that the closed meeting is recorded electronically. (The one exception to the requirement of an electronic recording is if the local public body’s attorney certifies that the closed discussion involve an attorney-client communication subject to the attorneyclient privilege.)

Answer: No, and no. First, as to the question of the adequacy of notice for an emergency meeting, the COML does not have any explicit provisions that recognize an exemption to the regular notice requirements for an “emergency” meeting. However, the Colorado Court of Appeals has previously upheld town’s actions at an emergency meeting when those actions were later ratified at a properly noticed regular meeting. The court concluded that an emergency meeting is acceptable so long as the emergency was unanticipated and so long as the public is later given an adequate opportunity to observe a proper public discussion on the topics that were handled at the executive session.

As a result, the rule is that a closed meeting (usually) must be recorded. An open meeting need not be.

Question: Do open meetings law requirements apply to the board of directors of a charter school?

Answer: Most definitely, yes. A charter school’s board is a “local public body” under the COML, and it is subject to all of the same requirements of the statute as would a regular school board.

Question: A special district hospital here announced that an emergency executive session was called for today at noon. This meeting was announced to board members yesterday afternoon, but not to the public. The meeting is to fill a vacancy on the board. I asked the chairman what the emergency was, since they have 60 days to appoint a new member. He said he was instructed to call the meeting by the hospital administrator,

Second, with respect to the notion of an executive session to conduct a closed-door discussion of the vacancy on the board, the COML is clear. No such closed discussions are permitted, of any kind. The statute makes it explicitly clear that there may never be a closed-door executive session for the purpose of “discussions concerning any member of the local public body . . . . or the appointment of a person to fill the office of a member of the local public body.” This provision appears at Section 24-6-402(4)(f)(II), C.R.S., of the COML. In addition, the board also may not conduct any poll or reach an consensus around who the board wishes to appoint to fill that vacancy during a closed-door meeting. All such decision-making must be entirely in public

Question: We have a hospital district that won’t release a copy of a severance agreement that resulted in a large severance payment to an executive who was fired from the hospital. Is that legal?

Answer: No. The Colorado Open Records Act (“CORA”) makes it clear that any amount paid or benefit provided to a public employee incident to termination of employment is not within the “personnel files” exemption in the statute, and therefore must be disclosed. This provision, however, cannot be turned on its head to mean that the severance agreement itself is not itself a “public record” subject to inspection. In fact, the document is quite plainly within the statutory definition of “any record made, maintained or kept” by a government entity “for use in the exercise of functions required or authorized by law or by administrative rule.” This is why we have obtained access, under CORA, to settlement agreements between public employees and their former employers when such employees filed suit for wrongful termination and/or discriminatory discharge.

As any assertion that the severance is exempt from disclosure under the “personnel files” exemption, the Colorado Court of Appeals has made clear that the “personnel files” exemption is limited to information in an employee’s files that is unrelated to the employee’s on-duty conduct in discharging public employment functions. As a result, the “personnel files” exemption is statutorily limited to “personal demographic information” of the same type that is expressly set forth in the statute: home addresses, telephone numbers, and [personal] financial information . . . maintained because of the employer-employee relationship.”

Weight loss competition turns into a total community effort LEADVILLE from Page 1

“One thing people in the city don’t realize about small communities is how people come together when something needs to be done,” said Jim McCall, a member of Team Wii McFlabby and a Leadville resident for 38 years.

“I was blown away by the turnout.

The most fun part was getting the whole community involved. At the weigh-ins every week, it felt like being a Walmart greeter, saying hello to everyone.”

His team’s name, like many other team names, reflected the competition’s mixture of hope and misgiving. There were the Literary Losers, Wii McFlabby, Waist Not Want Not, Chunky Monkeys, The Fat Losers, Waist Management, Half Ton of Fun and the City — a loose reference to the cumulative poundage of 19-plus

tons at the initial weigh-in.

Every week, the Herald Democrat printed the names of the contestants leading the competition. Week after week, the same teams tended to dominate the list: two couples composing the Mamas and the Papas, the elementary-school teachers called Bringing Sexy Back, and the Skinny Cookies (a team sponsored by the Cookies With Altitude bakery).

At the Week 12 weigh-in, with four weeks left in the contest, the competitors learned that they collectively lost 1 ton of weight, meaning the average weight loss per person was more than 10½ pounds. Some lost more than others. Debbie McCall, Jim McCall’s wife and another member of Wii McFlabby, said she could see a dramatic difference in Susan Estes, a member of the Mamas and the Papas.

“You could look at Susan Estes from across the room and tell that

she’s lost weight,” Debbie McCall said.

Leadville residents who weren’t part of the Get the Lead Out contest found themselves following the competition or attending one of the exercise classes — drop-in hockey, water aerobics, a walking club, core and spin classes — or nutrition presentations associated with the competition.

At the post office, supermarket, gas station, school and library, noncompetitors stopped contestants to congratulate them and their teams on their progress. (Predictably, a handful of voluble local cranks also added Get the Lead Out to the Leadville Trail 100 race and other events they dislike.)

Jackie Duba, a physician’s assistant at Zwardlinger’s practice, noticed a marked decrease in overall bloodpressure readings as the weeks passed.

Inevitably, as weight loss slowed, participants began dropping out. By

the end of the competition on May 7, a total of 33 of the original contestants had bailed.

Still, Get the Lead Out founder Karen Rinehart was impressed that most of the people stuck with the program. One of the most inspirational contestants was LaYana Doster.

Perennial dieter Doster had the misfortune of undergoing surgery on one foot during the middle of the competition.

Post-surgery recuperation required her to stay in a wheelchair for more than four weeks, severely limiting the amount of exercise she could do. At the May 7 final weighin, Doster arrived with the help of a walker. When fellow contestants applauded her tenacity and called for a speech, Doster was teary.

“I’ve done every weight-loss program there is,” she said.

“When I heard about Get the Lead

Out, I was pretty excited. I lost over 35 pounds, and I now know more about nutrition and food than I ever have.

And what’s been instrumental is your support.”

Two of the biggest losers were spouses Susan and Gary Estes. Her starting weight was 208.4 pounds; by the competition’s end, she was down to 174.2 pounds. Gary Estes was more circumspect about his exact numbers, but he lost a total of 75 pounds — 23 percent of his original body weight — which won him the award for biggest individual male loser.

“It wasn’t easy,” Estes said, to trade the processed foods he likes — especially pizza and spaghetti — for “nothing that gave us real joy,” specifically, lean chicken, vegetables, fruit and low-carbohydrate, whole-grain foods.

Reprinted with permission from the May 22 edition of The Denver Post.