editor colorado
Inside: Scenes from the 2012 CPA convention. PAGE 4
Official publication of the Colorado Press Association / coloradopressassociation.com / Vol. LXXXIII, No. 3
March 2012
CPA CONVENTION
2012 CPA convention a wrap Despite snowstorms and road closures, attendance at the 2012 Colorado Press Association Annual Convention reached a 10-year high with nearly 300 registered attendees. While it’s hard to predict whether slight economic upturns or the quality of the convention programming were key factors in increased attendance, early convention survey responses indicate a certain buzz about
Increased attendance, new buzz contribute to fun atmosphere the Westin, solid industry speakers and an overall interest in reconnecting with newspaper peers. “Selecting enough variety and talent to meet the diverse needs of our membership is always a challenge,” said CPA executive director Samantha Johnston. “This year, we relied
heavily on the feedback we received from last year’s survey and I’m interested to see whether this year’s survey results reflect those changes.” 2011 survey comments were a big factor in determining what the 2012 offerings would be, including a heavier focus on editorial, technical and
social media skills and a strong focus on community newspapers. “We are actively working to change the perception that CPA caters to large daily newspapers,” Johnston said. “While the large daily newspapers provide perspective and support that is integral to a
person of the year
State papers have friend in Worm
CONVENTION on page 5
rising star service to the first
Marfitano a true star on the rise
Editor’s note: The following speech was presented by Jeanette Chavez at the 2012 CPA convention. This year’s newspaper person of the year truly needs no introduction. However, if you are one of the few people in this room who hasn’t heard of him, don’t think you have misheard when I tell you his name. He is affectionately known as Worm. As Dean Singleton, publisher of The Denver Post, said, “Worm knows more about Colorado newspapers than Charbonneau anybody. Although he works for The Denver Post, he has worked with small newspapers across Colorado to make all of our newspapers better servants in our communities. Worm recognizes that it takes newspapers of all sizes to serve our state, and he has always worked for the betterment of all of them.” After working his way up from part-time carrier to dock supervisor and fleet manager, Rick Charbonneau became The Post’s state circulation manager in 2000. If you talk to just about anyone at a Colorado newspaper, they know Worm, and they have a story to tell about his kindness, his willingness to help, and his ability to figure out a solution to just about any problem.
well-rounded association, non-daily newspapers make up more than twothirds of our membership and have the biggest voice in changes made within the association. In a perfect world, we would meet every need of every newspaper all of the time. If we can meet most of the needs of most our members all of the time, I think we can all agree that’s success.”
Editor’s note: The following letter by Grand Junction Daily Sentinel Managing Editor Laurena Mayne Davis was submitted to nominate copy editor Carrie Marfitano for the Rising Star Award. Marfitano received the honor at the 2012 CPA convention.
Photos by Thomas Cooper From left: 2012 Service to the First winners Lori Schafer, Jaclyn Gutierrez, Jeanette Chavez and Brenda Brandt.
Students stood ground in face of great pressure Editor’s note: The following speech was presented by Jack Kennedy, executive director of the Colorado High School Press Association, at the 2012 CPA convention. When the editors and staff of the Overland High School “Scout” started reporting a little over a year ago on the death of classmate Leibert Phillips, they were not trying to embarrass the school or any individuals. They wanted to memorialize a fellow student who had died all-too-young, and without much fanfare.
They just wanted to tell his story, to acknowledge a life, and to share some of that life with their readers. They also thought readers might want to know the cause of death, and they included that in one of the final grafs of the story. And then . . . all hell broke loose. I will get back to the story in a moment, but I wanted to provide a little bit of context here. This may be coincidence: but in a few weeks we will celebrate the 22nd anniversary of the Colorado
WORM on page 5
FIRST on page 6
The Tomorrow’s newsrooms will be filled with journalists with a traditional drive to tell the stories of their community and a new appreciation for creative presentation and collaborative work. In short, they will be filled with people like Carrie Marfitano Marfitano, a copy editor for The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. Ms. Marfitano’s experience is impressive. She spent a year abroad at the Uppsala Universitiet in Sweden studying International Media and Communication Studies before graduating from the University of Colorado, Boulder, in December of 2007. In a short time she has amassed a rich amount of experience, including: • An internship on the design desk of the Loveland Reporter-Herald from December 2007 to May 2008. • Summer work for PEAKS magazine, The Magazine of Vail Resorts, in 2007 as an art intern. • Covering the CU president’s office in 2007 for The Campus Press, the online student newspaper of the STAR on page 5
2012